When the Heavens Fail
by Sedor
Summary: Sick of the inaction of the Spirit King, one member of the Royal Family takes it upon himself to stop Aizen and return order to the world. IchixYoru. Rated M for violence, language etc.
1. 1: Exiled

**When the Heavens Fail.**

Right my apologies for those that wanted to see The Bird of Hermes, but I am going to place it under revision for the moment. Looking back at it as my first fic, I want it to be so much more than what it is at the moment. I will leave it up, but I won't be updating it, since I will be going back to the beginning to rewrite it. The basics will remain the same, but it's beginning to drag me down mentally, with how much the first ten chapters compare to the last seven. Again my apologies for this.

This is a little something that struck me due to a particular scene, digital cheesecake to those that can name the source of my inspiration. Events differ significantly from canon.

XXX

Chapter 1: Exiled

_One hundred years before current timeline._

Within the Royal dimension, a slight breeze wafted into the high vaulted windows of the Royal Palace, a majestic sight with its tall golden towers and open halls. Within the throne room, countless guards, servants, advisors and others, stood or sat in the rafters as they watched the events happening in Soul Society, together with the Royal Family.

The King, Isshin Kurosaki, had the appearance of a 40 year old man despite being over ten thousand years old, with spiky black hair and a full beard. He was clothed in fine golden plate armour, a silver sword hung at his waist. His brown eyes narrowed as he watched Sosuke Aizen gloat about his plans to Shinji Hirako, as he and his comrades underwent a hollowfication. A hand tightened around his own, causing him to turn his gaze to the owner.

His Queen Masaki, a woman that appeared to be in her thirties and who in his mind, was the most beautiful woman in the known universe, with her fair skin and long brown hair and warm loving brown eyes that seemed to flow endlessly with joy. Now though, her eyes were saddened at the fate of the Captains and Lieutenants, as they were mutated against their will. Squeezing her hand gently, he tried to reassure her with a smile.

Beyond her sat his youngest children, twins girls, but as different as night and day. They looked to be about fourteen years old. Yuzu was the shy and caring one, with short brown hair and brown eyes, an almost exact copy of her mother as a child. Karin on the other hand, had inherited her father's black hair, but with dark brown, almost black coloured eyes. Their eyes were fixed on the projection below, while their hands clutched their dresses tightly as they shook.

Behind them all, his son Ichigo stood with his arms crossed. If the girls were considered the symbol of his compassion and empathy, then his son was the symbol of his power. He looked like an eighteen or nineteen year old and stood just over six feet tall, clad in plate armour as black as the night sky, yet when light reflected off it, it gave off a brilliant dark blue glow. His orange hair shadowed his brown eyes, his face scowling as he watched the proceedings. Hung at his waist, was a silver sword like his father.

As the Central 46, the so called 'King's handpicked council' declared that Kisuke was to be exiled and Tessai imprisoned, along with the execution of the infected Captains and Lieutenants, Ichigo, Karin and Isshin's eyes narrowed, while Masaki and Yuzu gasped. The judgement was interrupted though, by the arrival of Yoruichi Shihoin, as she effortlessly freed Kisuke and Tessai. Watching as Kisuke made his promise to try and help cure the mutated soul reapers, the projection was finally cut off. His hands tightening at the events in Soul Society, Ichigo watched his father's eyes for any hint of his plans.

"What will you do now father?" Ichigo asked as he walked from behind the throne to stand before his father. "We have seen that Sosuke Aizen has been sacrificing countless souls to that 'thing', as well as trying to turn other soul reapers into hollows. Surely by now you will allow us to capture and interrogate him?"

Looking his son in the eye, Isshin shook his head and leaned back in his throne.

"It is not our place to interfere in the matters of Soul Society or the Living World Ichigo," Isshin said in a chiding tone, watching as his son clenched his hands into fists. "They will have to sort this problem out on their own."

"And how do you think they will do that father?" Ichigo shouted, his father's laidback attitude grinding away at his patience. "That man has managed to fool his superiors since the first day he met them. Countless lives have been lost and countless more will be added to that list. Why then do you continually tell us to do nothing?"

Isshin sighed at his son's arguments. Ever since they had learned of Aizen's actions, Ichigo had been actively lobbying to deal with him there and then, but Isshin always declined him the opportunity to do anything.

"The soul reapers need to learn how to deal with their own problems Ichigo," Isshin said sternly, his eyes narrowing as they focused on Ichigo. "If they fail to stop him, then we will step in, not before."

"So you want us to keep waiting," Ichigo said, it was not a question, more a statement. "Waiting as that madman robs even more people of their lives. You say that the soul reapers need to learn how to deal with this on their own? Why is that father?" Ichigo asked as he strode around the throne room, his plate boots echoing through the halls.

"We were charged with overseeing the worlds and providing guidance to them," Ichigo continued. "Yet ever since you decided that we should allow them greater freedom and the ability to rule themselves, they have decayed." Looking around the room at all the gathered residents of the Royal dimension, he spread his arms out as he continued his speech. "Under our guidance, the worlds prospered, they learnt the ideals of love, friendship, justice, sacrifice and many more. Under our guidance they experienced the greatest period of peace for centuries." Turning back to face his father, he dropped his arms and his voice acquired an almost accusatory tone to it. "Until you decided to withdraw all our support for them father. Now the only contact we have with them is when we find a promising member within the Gotei 13 and induct them into the Royal Guard. Our sole interaction with them is the theft of innovative and determined individuals, from their world to our own. How then can they govern themselves father, when we pluck those that could bring change to their order, away from them?"

"Watch your tone with me Ichigo," Isshin said as his patience was also quickly disappearing. "Whether you agree with my methods or not, they are my decisions to make. You'd do well to remember that."

"So you would hide behind your crown at a time like this, why am I not surprised," Ichigo scoffed. "We have the power to save countless lives and here you say we shouldn't? That they will handle it when clearly they will not. What use is having this power when it is not used to better their lives?"

"ENOUGH ICHIGO!" Isshin roared, his reiatsu flaring slightly about him as his anger built. Next to him, the Queen and his daughters shifted uncomfortably. "This matter is over," he declared and stood to leave.

"No it isn't father," Ichigo said softly. "For with every word you speak, the clearer it becomes to me that a coward sits upon that throne."

The room fell dead quiet at Ichigo's words, while Isshin halted in his stride. When he turned to look at his son, his eyes were revealed to be full of rage. With a roar he flashed across the room, grabbing Ichigo by his throat and lifting him into the air.

"You should know your place my son," he said as he drew his zanpakuto, morphing into his shikai of a long bladed spear.

Immediately the majority of the servants and advisors left the chamber to avoid the coming fight, while the Royal Guard spread out around the room to contain the rampant reiatsu. Tossing Ichigo into a pillar, Ichigo's body struck it, sending it crumbling down on top of him. From where they sat near the throne, Karin and Yuzu ran to their mother, tears in their eyes as their brother and father fought. Masaki though, only looked on with no hint of tears in her eyes, focusing solely on calming her daughters.

Breaking free of the rubble, Ichigo stood unscathed and looked back at his father, his face showing no emotion. Stepping out of it, he closed to within a few feet of his father and stopped.

"Not going to draw your zanpakuto son?" Isshin asked irritably. "You're going to get seriously hurt if you don't."

Ichigo showed no signs that he acknowledged or even heard his father, as he continued to stare unemotionally at the man. Growing tired at his son's attitude, Isshin charged in again, bringing his zanpakuto down in a vertical slash. Ichigo stood unmoving, his hands moving like lightning to catch the blade, as it neared his head. Stunned momentarily, Isshin watched as Ichigo shifted his blade to his side and ducked in with a dual punch to his chest, sending him flying backwards into another pillar.

Relaxing his posture, Ichigo waited for his father to make his next move. He did not have to wait long, as soon a powerful Sokatsui erupted from the rubble, scorching the marble floor as it raced towards him.

"_Tenran," _Ichigo chanted, bringing his hands up in front of him as a whirlwind spun from them, smothering the flame as it neared. Ducking his head, he narrowed his eyes as his father reappeared behind him. As he rolled forward, he brought his foot up to catch his father on his chin, sending the man flying once again. This time though, he followed after him, bringing his clasped fists together down on Isshin's back, sending him crashing into the floor.

Growing agitated with his son's actions, Isshin stood uninjured, despite taking a number of attacks to his body and began charging his reiatsu into his blade. Knowing what was coming, the members of the Royal Guard erected Bakudo no. 81 in front of everyone, while Masaki did the same for herself and her daughters. Ichigo showed no reaction to the attack and stood with his hands out in front of him once again.

"_Getsuga Tensho!" _Isshin yelled and swung his staff upwards towards Ichigo, a blue crescent moon of energy firing from the blade. As it struck Ichigo, the wave came to an abrupt halt as the two strove against one another. Slowly but surely, the wave began to overwhelm Ichigo, before finally exploding against him and sending a shockwave outwards. It passed harmlessly though, as the force was absorbed by the shields around them. Ichigo's body however, fell to the floor, landing with a thud and smoking lightly. As Isshin walked over and stood over him, he regarded his son dispassionately.

"It is still too soon for you to be questioning me Ichigo," he said and turned to leave. He had only moved a few steps though, before he found his feet swept out from under him, landing with a muted thud on the floor. Standing above him, he noticed Ichigo for the most part unharmed, his bleeding hands holding his staff to his throat.

"You may have desired to mark me father," Ichigo said as his golden blood flowed down the staff and dripped onto Isshin's armour, "but I have no intention of harming you. Know this, I surpassed you a long time ago and the only reason you did mark me, was because I needed to see if you would. You've confirmed that you're not just a coward, but filth that has lost sight of the charge he was given and taught." Turning to look at who was still present, he could make out only the guards and strongest of the advisors left.

"What do the rest of you think? Do you really believe that we should allow the soul reapers to handle the mess that they cannot even see? Or do we act like the protectors we call ourselves and step in to aid them? Speak your minds now!" he commanded.

Despite that though, they all remained stubbornly mute, their gazes turned away from him and his father. Noticing his friends since childhood Tatsuki Arisawa and Yasutora Sado standing near one of the pillars, he looked at them imploringly, only to feel disheartened as they shook their heads and averted their gaze. Switching his gaze to his mother and sisters, he watched as they had tears in the corners of their eyes, but remained silent. Lastly he looked down at his father, seeing the smug grin spreading across his face at how no one would speak out in support of Ichigo.

"Face it son, no one will follow you. They believe that we should allow them to make their own mistakes and face the consequences of those mistakes," Isshin said as he tried to rise, only to find his blade stabbed near his ear, keeping him pinned down.

"Cowards, the whole lot of you!" Ichigo growled as his eyes burned into each of them. "If your orders are to do nothing, then I will abandon my position if that is what it takes, to do what is right!"

"What do you mean Ichigo?" Isshin asked in confusion, his tone indicating his anger returning. He was silenced though as Ichigo kicked him towards his throne.

"Listen closely for I do not intend to repeat myself father, in fact…I no longer consider you to be my father," Ichigo said as he held the bladed staff out in front of him, his sisters actually crying now, while his parents and everyone else watched on shocked. "I abandon my position, my inheritance…my NAME in the pursuit of helping others. I will be the protector that you are all too cowardly to be." Ripping his chest piece open, he revealed his torso, tattooed with the Royal Sigil on it. Bringing the blade to it, he infused it with his own reiatsu, before touching it to the mark and screaming in agony as it was burned away. A massive shockwave originated from his body, overwhelming the barriers protecting everyone and sending them flying back, while the pillars cracked and windows shattered.

Within the centre of the blast though, Isshin and Masaki watched as Ichigo's armour cracked around his body, while his black reiatsu flared wildly about him. In the midst of this vortex of power, a slim beam of golden reiatsu plunged into Ichigo's chest, causing him to cough up a mouthful of blood. Unlike earlier though, it was now a deep crimson colour, no longer its rich gold glow. The beam then lifted Ichigo's body and began to glow brightly, signalling that it would soon expel him from the Royal dimension. Sharing one last look of defiance with his father, Ichigo offered a tentative smile to his mother, before the beam snapped and his body disappeared. With a sigh, Masaki held a glowing palm to each of her daughter's foreheads, sending them into a dreamless sleep, before standing from her seat and walking towards her husband. As Isshin struggled to his feet, he turned to face Masaki as she neared him.

"Masaki I…" he was silenced as his wife slapped him across his face, his head snapping to the side from the force behind it. Turning back to face her, he saw her eyes pouring with tears and filled with equal amounts of rage and grief.

"Your pride and arrogance just cost us our son Isshin!" she spat venomously. "It was your arrogance that you are always right and your pride in your own abilities that led to this mess. Until you can fix this mess you've made, don't even bother talking to me." With that said she walked back to her daughters and with the aid of a servant, carried the sleeping girls to her room.

Looking around him, Isshin watched as everyone left the throne room, their eyes downcast. Grumbling to himself, he picked up his zanpakuto from where it laid and walked back to his throne. Stabbing the blade into the ground, he sank into his throne, with his head in his hands, his son's last words echoing in his head.

XXX

In the Soul Society, Yoruichi Shihoin leaned back in a tree as she watched the stars above her. Not too long ago, she watched as her two best friends along with the eight victims of Aizen's hollowfication experiment, slipped into untraceable Gigais and departed for the World of the Living. Now she merely had to think of how she would escape the Soul Society. She was brought out of her thoughts by a shooting star in the sky. Smiling at the sight, she sighed.

'_Ah it couldn't hurt to ask for some Divine intervention now could it,' _she thought with a smirk, wishing for some sort of help with her situation. As she continued to track the star, she grew alarmed as it grew larger and larger as it neared her. Just before it struck the area she was near, she flash stepped away as it crashed into the ground, burning anything and everything in its path as it rolled.

"Dammit I wanted help, not a near death experience," she groaned as she stood up, brushing the foliage and dirt from her hair and uniform. Flash stepping down the trail of destruction, she was surprised when she found the passed out form of a young man with bright orange hair, clad in broken plate armour and bleeding from several wounds to his body.

'_This day just keeps getting better and better,' _she grumbled, picking up the man and heading back to the underground training area. When she finally reached it, she thought of how to treat him, settling quickly on just placing him in the hot springs and letting it heal his wounds. A mischievous grin formed on her face at the thought of stripping the stranger, but was quickly dispelled as she gazed at his body. He was lean and muscled, but not overly built like some of the soul reapers she knew. What shocked her most though was the large burn across his chest, the skin blistered and bleeding.

Not wasting any more time, she slipped off his armour and sword, and placed him into the hot spring. Expecting him to wake up and flail about the minute he hit the water, Yoruichi was confused when nothing happened. The only sign that he was in the water, being the few bubbles that floated to the surface every now and then. Panicking, she dived into the water after the strange man, supporting his head so that it was at least above the water level. Making sure he was breathing evenly, she breathed a sigh of relief, before groaning once again at the fact that her clothes were now soaked.

Shifting her gaze back and forth between the unconscious man and herself, she quickly divested herself of her clothing, throwing it next to his where it landed with a loud splat. Free of the restricting clothing, she continued to support her charge, her breasts pressed into his back while she held him, her chin resting on his shoulder. Idly tracing his toned muscles, she watched as his wounds sealed over and yet he still didn't wake up.

'_Guess this might take a bit of time' _she thought, bringing them closer to the edge so that she could at least sit down. Minutes later, she passed out with her arms still wrapped tightly around Ichigo, missing the signs that he was stirring.

When Ichigo opened his eyes, he was dimly aware that he was in a hot pool and his wounds stung slightly, while his head swam, trying to recall everything he did. His words…the duel with his father…and finally…the moment he threw away his life to come and aid the soul reapers. Now that he was fully aware once again, he was aware of a warm body pressed against his own, notably a female body judging by the 'fleshy globes' he could feel pressing into his back. Turning his head back slightly, he beheld the sight of a naked Yoruichi, the woman that had helped Kisuke and Tessai escape, with her body pressed up tightly against his own.

"Uh miss," he said gently, touching her hands to try and wake her up. She stirred and seemed surprised to find Ichigo awake.

"Oh good you're up," she said with a slight yawn, stretching her arms above her and giving Ichigo a full tour of her body, making the exiled prince blush. Noticing this, she chuckled. "Don't tell me a hot guy like you is such a prude," she said with a grin, making Ichigo scowl.

"Oh please," he said rolling his eyes. "First off where are we? And why are you naked…better yet why are we both naked and in this hot spring?"

"Well nameless wonder," Yoruichi said poking his forehead with a slim finger, "you were all cut up and burned, so I placed you in this healing spring. Only you decided to stay passed out and force me to leap into the water to save your sorry ass," she said with a grin. "So tell me, how did you get those injuries?"

"My name is Ichigo, Yoruichi," he said shocking her that he knew her name, "and it's a very long story."

"Well you'd best get started then," she said with narrowed eyes. "Starting with how you knew my name."

XXX

And that's the end of the introduction. Honestly I get ambushed by ideas without warning. Maybe I should start giving them away. *Recoils as a wave of plot bunnies pour into the room armed with carrot pistols and the like.* Or not…help…

Anyway, this will be updated last now and I will resume with my updating cycle (The Red Sun Sets finally gets its turn).

So what did you think of this, like, love or hate? Let me know please.


	2. 2: Now what?

**When the Heavens Fail.**

Right I know I said 'The Sons of War' would be updated next, but I literally ran into a roadblock. I have an idea where to go from Chapter 4, but how I get there is anyone's guess at the moment. Think I went through at least two drafts before I said forget it and left it alone for now.

Anyway I must admit I never thought people would like this story that much. My thanks to those that reviewed and well, all I can say for now is read on and enjoy. Here have a cup of coffee and a donut.

Disclaimer: I do not own Bleach.

"Normal speech"

'_Thoughts'_

"_Kido/Zanpakuto release"_

"**Zanpakuto"**

XXX

Chapter 2: Now what?

After Ichigo had moved across the hot spring to sit facing Yoruichi, he began his tale about how he came to find himself in the Soul Society. All the while he spoke, Yoruichi sat and listened with a serious expression on her face, her body from her neck down under the water. When he finally finished speaking and watched for her reaction, he was surprised when she burst out laughing.

"Um Yoruichi?" he asked, confused at her mirth while she finally seemed to regain some of her composure, but still letting out a chuckle now and then.

"I'm sorry _little boy_," she began making him grit his teeth in frustration since he knew he was far older than her in both age and maturity, "But your story is just too unbelievable, I mean why would the King even allow his son to leave without stopping him. Furthermore, I can't even imagine you fighting the King, isn't he supposed to be stronger than you? Why would you even want to get involved in the first place when he told you not too?"

"I'll have you know that I'm older than your Captain Commander _little girl_. And what reason do you have to doubt my words?" he asked curiously. "You doubt that I could stand up to that coward? You doubt that I care enough to help you people?" he shouted, startling her. Before she knew it, he was in front of her, his body almost touching her own.

"W-What are you doing?" she stuttered as he drew a single finger closer and closer to her forehead.

"Enlightening you," he simply said and pressed his index finger to her forehead. All at once Yoruichi felt a stinging sensation in her mind and found herself reeling from the foreign contact.

When the world stopped spinning, she found herself in the throne room of the palace he had just described to her. Looking around she could see the countless advisors, guards and of course his family, with her standing to his right. Looking down at herself, she found she was completely nude and hastily covered herself, somewhat embarrassed to be before this many high level reapers with no clothing to speak of.

Seeing the events that had led to her friend's banishment and her subsequent exile, she came to the realisation that this was merely a memory and she was of course not there, so she let her hands hang loose at her sides. Now as she watched the scene play out, she could feel each of Ichigo's emotions as he argued with his father and the fight that went with it.

Once the first blow was thrown, she could feel sadness begin to build within him as his father attacked, changing to pity as he deflected the man's attacks. When it reached the point that he was hit by a Getsuga Tensho, she could feel both the pain of the attack cutting into his hands, as well as the pain in his heart from the fact that his own father was baying for his blood. Collapsing to all fours over the slew of emotions, she took in several ragged breaths while Ichigo fell from the air.

When he had leapt up from the ground to pin his father, she felt his shame at being related to such a person. None of the previous emotions though came close to what he felt after he asked everyone for their opinions. Looking at how his friends turned away from him…betrayal. The sad look from his mother…abandonment. The smug look of satisfaction from his father…disgust.

When it came to the point where he brought his father's zanpakuto to his chest, she felt a moment of mind-numbing pain, before her world began to spin once again. When she came to, she found herself being supported by Ichigo, while he still had a hard look in his eyes.

"You don't need to feel that pain," he whispered into her ear, making her shiver, while he set her down at the edge and waded back to the other side of the spring. "So believe me now _little girl_?"

"I still don't see why you would sacrifice so much to help us though," she whispered, watching as a sad look crossed his face and he turned away from her.

"Because I believe that everyone's lives are worth saving, even at the cost of my own," he said with a sigh and leaned down with his head in his hands. "You think your life has been long and you've seen many things Yoruichi? Well let me tell you, that you have faced nothing like the horrors I've fought, to keep the Soul Society safe." When she opened her mouth to protest, he silenced her with a glare.

"The worst you have to worry about is a Captain going rogue or whispers of a Vasto Lorde," he continued, "I've had to deal with creatures that could simply turn this world to dust if left to roam freely. You cannot fathom what it was like to hold so much power, but still be unable to save thousands. To know I have the power and be ordered not to save even a single soul…it was the final straw in a long line of arguments with my _father_," he said, spitting out the last word as if it was a curse.

"What will you do now then?" she asked curiously. She knew that all roads would lead to Aizen, but how would this exiled prince go about his business.

"I don't know yet," he sighed, "I think the first thing I'll do is help get you out of the Soul Society, since I'm sure that the others have already noticed your absence." At his words, he could see a pained expression cross her face, probably from someone she was leaving behind. As he made to get out, he stumbled slightly as his body still ached from the energy he expended to survive being ejected from the Royal Dimension. Before he could fall to his feet though, he found himself being supported by a much smaller body. Looking down to his right, he could see Yoruichi supporting his weight with a small smile on her face.

"You're in no condition to go anywhere _old man_," she chuckled, watching as his face lit up in fury at being called old. "You need to rest for tonight at least and after that, we can figure out how to get out of here."

Grunting his acceptance, he slipped the pants, that he wore under his armour on, and allowed himself to be led to a room carved into the side of the cavern. Leaving him seated on the floor, Yoruichi disappeared off into a back area and returned with two futons for them to use.

"Sleep well _old man_," she said with a grin as she turned over to sleep, missing the glare he sent her once again.

"You too…_little girl_," he muttered, his fingers idly tracing the burn on his chest as he looked down on it.

XXX

After only three hours of sleep, Ichigo felt a restlessness building within him that forced him to get up. Looking to his side, he could see the still form of Yoruichi as she slept peacefully, her body moving slightly with each breath she took. Feeling the same restless feeling again, he got up and walked outside, knowing his zanpakuto wanted to speak to him personally.

Walking out into the cavern, he found a smooth spot and sat down to meditate. Feeling the sense of weightlessness he had come to associate with entering his inner world, he opened his eyes and beheld the majestic blue towers that made up his inner world. Looking around, he could feel his spirit in one of the more wooded areas of this city and made his way towards it.

Sweeping a branch out of his way, he found the brooding teenager that was Zangetsu seated on a tree stump, surrounded by a small Beagle puppy, an orange kitten and other woodland creatures with frown on his face. The spirit was clothed in a black cloak and boots, with shoulder length black hair and light blue eyes.

"You know," Ichigo said as he strode into the clearing, the animals and his zanpakuto turning to watch him, "you never look that sad when surrounded by your pets and nature." Leaning against a tree, he watched Zangetsu turn away from him and pull a box of what looked like dog biscuits of his coat and tossed a few away for the animals to chase after.

"And you have never done something like this," Zangetsu said as he stood and left the trees, Ichigo following after him. "In all the millennia I have served as your partner, never have you so…so…recklessly thrown away your life!" the spirit shouted and stopped to glare at Ichigo. "Not even when we discovered that hollow that was the size of the _fucking world_ have you ever acted like this. So tell me why?"

Unsurprised at his zanpakuto's anger, Ichigo strode past the enraged teen and continued back towards the city. Looking at the towers, he noted that they had grown slightly since the last time he was here.

"Because we can do something to stop this," Ichigo said simply. "This is not about proving anything to anyone else Zangetsu. It is simply because we can help them and we shall."

Knowing that there was nothing really he could do to change his master's mind, Zangetsu only sighed and stood next to him, looking out over the city as it shone brightly.

"I'm surprised that our powers didn't decrease that much after what I did yesterday," Ichigo said, making Zangetsu scoff.

"Your powers rely on your resolve, and your resolve was as strong as ever yesterday," he explained. "Why then would you think your powers would decrease?"

"Eh just making sure," Ichigo grinned and looked back out over his inner world. "I know I said it wasn't about showing off to anyone, but I wonder what his face would look like if we solve this problem and save the others."

"I would imagine it would be as comical as that time we stole his zanpakuto and hid it away in his office," Zangetsu chuckled at the memory, while Ichigo laughed openly.

"He spent hours raiding our hideaways and such," Ichigo choked out, as laughter wracked his frame, "Hell even Engetsu refused to tell him where he was." As they stood in silence, enjoying their time together; Zangetsu broke the silence once again.

"So tell me Ichigo, you're not a paedophile are you?" Zangetsu asked as he watched Ichigo fall over comically.

"Where the fuck did that come from?" Ichigo spat and glared at his zanpakuto.

"Well," the spirit said looking back at the sun rise, "Yoruichi-chan is awfully young for you isn't she? Maybe she's right and you are just a perverted old man."

"Are you kidding me?" Ichigo sputtered. "She's more than old enough, I mean just look at her, she looks at least 30."

"Judging a woman by her looks?" Zangetsu smirked with an eyebrow raised, "sure she may look legal, but that's looks after all."

"That's it, I've heard enough," he grumbled and left his inner world, conscious of the fact that his zanpakuto was still laughing at him.

XXX

When he exited his inner world, he could feel Yoruichi's presence hovering in front of him. Cracking a single eye open, he sputtered and fell back as he glimpsed her naked flesh before him.

"What the hell Yoruichi," he screamed as he stood glaring at her, only to realise that now he was taking in a full look of her body, as she stood there in all her nude glory once again, water dripping down her curves and causing one too many perverted thoughts to run through his mind.

"What?" she asked innocently with a smile on her face, "Girl's got to have a bath now doesn't she?"

"That's not the point," he grumbled as he looked her in the eye. "God and here I thought a Clan Head would be more modest, what did I do to earn this?"

"Oh so we're treating this as a reward now are we?" she said, the grin not leaving her face. "I guess we can if you happen to have some magical way to get the two of us out of here, but I know far more rewarding activities we could be doing."

"Never mind!" he shouted, "let's just grab something to eat and then hopefully I can think clearly."

"Eat? Oh my Ichigo I didn't know you were so forward," she said as she covered herself in mock embarrassment.

"Perverted _little girl_," he muttered under his breath as he walked passed her.

"Only as perverted as you _old man_," she grinned as he passed her.

XXX

"So how exactly do you think we can escape without the Gotei 13 tracking us?" Yoruichi asked as she handed him a bowl of noodles she had whipped up quickly.

"Without them tracking us? That's the easy bit, it's actually leaving that's worrying me," Ichigo said with a nod of his head in thanks.

"Oh?" she replied, a bundle of noodles hanging from her mouth as she looked at him. As he chuckled at her, she slurped them up, chewing quickly and swallowing. "I'm pretty sure that they're monitoring any private gate known to them, so unless you've got some hidden _'Royals Only' _gate we're kinda screwed."

"I see," he said as he finished with his bowl and placed it down. "There's no other choice then, we'll have to use the main gate to get out of here." Hearing his plan, she started choking, while he clapped her on the back to help.

"W-W-What?" she stuttered out in shock of his plan. "You want us to fight our way through to the main gate. Hell even if we sneak there, there's going to be Captains guarding that gate. I mean I may as well lay low in Rukongai for the next hundred years rather than take on several Captains."

"Who said anything about you taking on the Captains," he said with a smirk. "I said I would get you out of here and if that means fighting some of the Gotei 13, so be it. I'd kill Aizen too, but we need to find out what he's doing and I don't have time to capture him yet."

As she stared at this man, boy, ah hell who the fuck cares what he is, she couldn't help but wonder whether her wish for _Divine Intervention_ really did come true.

"When?" she asked, knowing that his mind was probably already set on this plan and taking a sip of her glass of milk.

"Tonight," he grinned, only to get sprayed in a shower of milk from Yoruichi's spit-take. As milk comically dripped from his hair, nose and chin, Yoruichi couldn't help but roll on the floor in laughter, while Ichigo stormed off to take a bath.

XXX

That evening, Jushiro Ukitake, Shunsui Kyoraku and Ginrei Kuchiki stood near the main senkaimon into the Seireitei, their heads bowed as they each were still reeling after the news they received over the last two days.

Eight high-ranking soul reapers, including Shunsui's own Lisa Yadomaru, had been found hollowfied in Kisuke Urahara's chambers. The man himself had proclaimed his innocence and now together with the eight victims and the former Kido Corps Captain Tessai were currently missing without a trace. What was also apparent was that Yoruichi Shihoin had aided in their escape and was now classified as an outlaw as well. Unlike the others though, her reiatsu signature still registered faintly within the Seireitei.

Sighing for what felt like the thousandth time that day, Kyoraku turned to look at his fellow guardsmen.

"Do you think he did it?" he asked simply, the other two knowing who he was referring too.

"I don't know," Ukitake sighed, "but the evidence against him is overwhelming."

"True," Kyoraku agreed, "but there's still how concerned he was for his own lieutenant's safety. And as much as it might seem like he was responsible, I still can't get over the look of absolute terror in his eyes when he found out that she was running into danger."

"Not everyone can be trusted Kyoraku," Ginrei said, his tone grave. "But the fact that Yoruichi-san would follow after him…I don't know what to think anymore."

The three couldn't continue their conversation as a figure appeared in the distance, walking slowly but purposefully towards them. Narrowing their eyes at the figure, they could see that they wore a black cloak that hid their face and body from them. When the figure was a scant 30 feet away, they came to a stop.

"Who are you?" Ginrei asked and placed a hand on the hilt of his zanpakuto, while Kyoraku and Ukitake did the same.

"My name is not important Captain Kuchiki," the figure said, their voice clearly male and radiating such authority and command that the three of them nearly stood at attention. "But you would do well not to bar my way. It would not do for the Gotei 13 to lose three more Captains on top of the seven they have lost already."

"Is that a threat?" Ukitake said cautiously, his mind rapidly absorbing everything it could of their attacker.

"I do not deal in threats Captain Ukitake," the man said as it turned to face him. "But I do make promises. So please I ask again, step aside and do not force me to fight you."

"I'm afraid that we can't do that," Kyoraku spoke, his tone jovial as always, "but if you surrender to us, I promise we won't attack you."

The man's shoulders slumped and for a second, the three of them thought that he would actually listen to them. That thought was dispelled when the man's arm reached out from under his cloak and swept it aside, revealing black plate armour and his hand resting on his zanpakuto.

"So be it," the man said and drew his blade. Before the Captains stunned eyes, they saw what they considered one of the finest blades that they had ever seen. The hilt of the sword was a royal blue with gold filigree wrapped around it, while down the length of the blade ran a thin, pale blue line making it seem as if the entire blade shimmered in the moonlight.

They couldn't admire it for much longer as the man charged at them clashing with Ginrei, who only managed to draw his blade half out of its sheath, before their blades connected in a shower of sparks. Breaking free of their stupor, Kyoraku and Ukitake charged in to assist him, while the man only turned to glance at them. Forcing Ginrei back, he spun to face the two charging at him and locked blades with them. Bringing his free hand to Kyoraku's chest, he flicked his fingers in his direction and sent the flamboyant Captain hurtling back into one of the towers lining the path, causing it to crumble down on top of him.

"_Hado no. 33, Sokatsui,"_ Ginrei chanted and sent a blue wave of fire charging at the man, engulfing their surroundings in a bright blue flame. The cloaked figure calmly raised his palm at the attack and sent a blast of wind at it, smothering the flame and sending Ginrei skidding backwards.

"My apologies, but…" the man said as he brought his blade down with crushing force, forcing the ground Ginrei stood on to crumble beneath him, "but I've fought a man far more proficient with that spell." Kicking the man away he whispered, _"Hado no. 33, Sokatsui," _causing a wave at least twice the size of Ginrei's to charge at the man. Before the attack could engulf him though, Ukitake appeared before him with his shikai active and sent the attack back at the man. Showing no surprise at the turnaround, the man calmly cut the wave in two, sending it to crash and destroy several towers behind him.

Seeing a slight movement in the corner of his eye, Ginrei looked back at the gate and saw a thin, lithe figure activating the gate while they were distracted.

"I'll leave him to you," he said to Ukitake and flash stepped off to stop the new threat, while Ukitake nodded in his direction.

"You've really improved in redirecting your enemy's attack since the last time I saw you Jushiro," the man said as he drew the two friend's attention back to him. "I must say I'm impressed that you could pull that off."

"Who are you exactly?" Ukitake asked once again, his curiosity getting the better of him as he desperately wanted to know who the man was now.

"I'm afraid I can't tell you just yet, rest assured that we have met before…boy" the figure said cryptically.

"It's been a long time since anyone called us boys," Kyoraku said as he stood with both his blades drawn and stood next to Ukitake. "You almost sound like Yama-jii calling us that." Charging forward, he clashed blades with the unknown figure, his tachi locked with the man's blade. Bringing his wakizashi in from the side, the man was forced to dodge backwards lest he lose his head.

"Still as deadly with her aren't you Shunsui, tell me is she in the mood to fight yet?" the man asked, noting the surprise on Kyoraku's face.

"So you know Katen Kyokotsu too? You're enjoying torturing us here aren't you?" Kyoraku said with a grin as he charged back into the fight.

"Maybe, you two were always an interesting pair when you were younger," the man teased. As their blades clashed again though, Kyoraku tilted his blade to catch the moonlight, blinding his opponent momentarily and illuminating his face.

"It can't be," Kyoraku gasped, his surprise leaving him open for a powerful kick to his gut, winding him, while the man charged forward and following up with a palm strike to Ukitake's chest, aggravating his illness to immobilise him.

"Sorry Jushiro," the man said as he stood over Ukitake, while the Captain coughed up a bit of blood.

"It's ready," his partner shouted over from where she fought Ginrei, prompting him to flash over and bind the man with Rikujokoro.

As the pair disappeared into the gate, it suddenly rumbled and shut down, completely cutting off all access to the World of the Living for the moment. Moments later, the rest of the Gotei 13's Captains and Lieutenants arrived at the scene of the carnage, their eyes widening at the destruction around them.

While Unohana tended to Ukitake, Ginrei broke free of the kido and joined Kyoraku as the Captain Commander gestured them over.

"What happened here?" he asked sternly.

"We were attacked by a single armed individual," Kyoraku began. "He showed remarkable skill in the four soul reaper arts, as well as possessing a brilliant tactical mind."

"Indeed," Ginrei added, "he used himself as the distraction to allow his female accomplice to activate the gate. Once I became aware of her, I intercepted her, but was too late to stop the gate from charging. Once the gate was fully ready, he incapacitated each of us and left with his companion."

"Was it Kisuke Urahara and Yoruichi Shihoin?" Yamamoto asked his eyes narrowed as he looked at the two in front of him.

As Ginrei made to speak though, he found himself silenced by Kyoraku.

"No Yama-jii, their identities are still unknown," Kyoraku said, he did lean in though, making the two of them listen carefully to his words, "We need to talk somewhere more private, one hour from now."

Nodding their heads at him, they all went their separate ways, leaving it to the Lieutenants to handle clean up.

XXX

An hour later, the three of them met once again, with Unohana and Ukitake joining them in the underground sewers.

"What is so important that you would delay me from speaking of the identities of one of our assailants Kyoraku?" Ginrei asked, while Yamamoto's eyes bored into his student.

"My apologies Kuchiki," Kyoraku said with a tip of his hat, "but before we begin who was it you fought?"

"It was Yoruichi Shihoin of course," Ginrei said and looked thoughtfully at his fellow Captains. "She was apologetic about having to fight me, but she said that even if she wanted to, she couldn't disobey the man you were fighting."

"I see," Kyoraku said as he scratched his chin. "Well she was right at least; none of us would question an order from him."

"What do you mean Captain Kyoraku?" Unohana asked, "From what you're saying I assume you know this man you fought."

"I do indeed Unohana-chan," he replied with a smile. "In fact he's one of the few people around that would call me and Jushiro _little boys. _In fact he called you a _little girl_ if my memory serves me correctly."

Comprehension dawned on the faces of Yamamoto, Ukitake and Unohana, while Ginrei blinked confusedly.

"Sorry, but who was this man?" he asked.

"A man that still intimidates me more than Yama-jii or Unohana –chan ever will," Kyoraku chuckled. "The Crown Prince, Ichigo Kurosaki."

XXX

And end. You know I wanted to do a fight scene, but at the same time I didn't want to show off Ichigo's powers too soon. I was chuckling to myself at the revelation between Ukitake, Kyoraku, Unohana, Ginrei and Yamamoto. I might have more fun with it later on. Also this will be one of my shorter length stories, I mean I prefer to let the chapter flow with it, rather than stuff it with drivel.

Right, now I like to involve you guys in the story every now and then. So leave a review as to who you think would replace Ichigo as being, well not the protagonist, but the support hero. I'll be putting up a poll of possible choices. Bear in mind, I am far from against any particular person being the hero, but some simply are not suited to the role so think carefully.

So what did you like, love or hate? Let me know please, I feed off reviews.


	3. 3: His Home Away From Home

**When the Heavens Fail.**

Yup you guys continue to amaze me with how much you love this story, so of course I'll keep writing for it. One thing I must say is that I almost took down the poll, because of a lightning bolt of inspiration that struck me…but I like to know what your guys and girls opinions are so it'll stay up. Rest assured, what I have planned at least in my head right now…no one will see coming. ARGH THE MORE I TALK ABOUT IT THE MORE I WANT TO WRITE IT.

Moving on, thanks for the reviews, the support is always appreciated.

Only question I want to answer right now is from bleachfan1015; I don't know yet, I'll see about a better description once we're further along.

Disclaimer: I do not own Bleach.

"Normal speech"

'_Thoughts'_

"_Kido/Zanpakuto release"_

"**Zanpakuto"**

XXX

Chapter 3: His Home Away From Home.

As the two of them ran through the Precipice World, Yoruichi could see a troubled expression on Ichigo's face.

"What happened back there?" she asked, jerking her head back in the direction of the gate.

"Shunsui found out who I was," he replied, shaking his head as if disappointed in himself. "I'll just have to trust that he doesn't tell anyone that doesn't already know who I am, that I was there."

"He's a shrewd man," she said with a smirk, "so knowing all the crazy shit that's happened over the last two days will probably make him all the more cautious with that piece of information." Her words seemed to reassure him slightly, until she spoke again. "I have to say though you really must be old if he could get the drop on you."

Rolling his eyes, he ignored her taunts and focused on the path ahead of them. As they both leapt out of the gate, they found themselves falling through the night sky and landing in a secluded forest.

"Good the adjustments I made worked," he said as he started to walk forward.

"Wait, where are we exactly?" she asked, running after him in the darkness since he showed no signs of stopping.

"The outskirts of Tokyo," he replied, "and a home where I tend to come every now and then."

Exiting the forest, Yoruichi could barely see a cosy home, roughly the size of a medium 3 bedroom home. It had a cobblestone path that led up to a covered wooden deck. The home itself was surrounded by a hedge of neat bushes, with purple flowers sprouting from it. To the left of the path was also a small pond with several reeds and wildlife in it. Watching him walk up to the front door, she saw him place a glowing hand over the front door, releasing whatever seal was in place. Seeing him holding the door open for her, she hurried in while he shut the door. The furnishings inside reflected the home's role as being a place of rest, as it only contained the bare minimum of items to make it comfortable to live in.

The living area had several cushions stacked neatly along the wall, while a medium sized coffee table occupied the middle of the room. The kitchen was stocked and functional, puzzling her since it seemed like he hardly spent any time here.

Feeling a hand on her shoulder, she turned back to see Ichigo gesturing for her to follow. Stopping at a wooden door, he slid it back to reveal a decent sized bedroom with a closet, rug, a vase of summer flowers on a desk and several other miscellaneous furnishings. There were also two doors that led out of the room.

"The futon and some appropriate clothing can be found in the closet, while an outdoor bath can be found through there," he said pointing at the one door. "Or if you prefer something more private, a simpler bathroom is through there," he said, gesturing at the remaining door.

"Explain to me why everything's not dead or mouldy, especially since you haven't been here in a while," she asked, as she stepped into the room, examining the clothing in the closet.

"Kido of course," he said simply and turned to leave her to get used to her new home.

A few minutes later when she re-joined him, she found him seated at the living room table, a cup of tea in hand while a single candle illuminated the room. Seeing a cup set out for her, she took her own seat and savoured the sweet tea.

"So what now?" she asked as she rested her head on her arms, watching as he fixed her with a curious look.

"I was thinking of finding out where your old friend Kisuke disappeared off to," he said taking a sip of his tea. "There wasn't anywhere in particular he would go first is there?"

"Don't know," she shrugged, making him sigh. "The thing about Kisuke is that he never really told you the full story behind his plans. We'll just have to lie low and track him down the old fashioned way."

"You're kidding me," he choked out. "He could be anywhere in the world Yoruichi, how exactly are we supposed to track him down that way?"

"Well no, he wouldn't leave Japan from what I know," she amended, "plus he has a bad habit of attracting attention. So we just need to listen for the signs and wait."

"I guess we have no other option for now then," he sighed and looked out at the night sky through the window.

XXX

Within the office of the Captain Commander, Genryusai Shigekuni Yamamoto sat with his head bowed and eyes closed as he digested the situation that the Gotei 13 was in. The loss of eleven high ranking officers was a terrible blow to their strength and a blemish on their record that it was caused by one of their own. Many would assume that the case was closed and there was no doubt about the culprit's guilt, but then again, no one but himself, his favourite students and Captains Kuchiki and Unohana knew that the prince of the Royal Family himself had come to the aid of one of the fugitives.

Some would say that then the prince himself must be involved in the crime itself, but such a person would soon find themselves nothing but a pile of ashes for daring to soil that man's name. Genryusai took pride in the fact that no soul reaper born in the last thousand years could match him, but that didn't apply to a man that exceeded him in all aspects.

_Flashback:_

_It was just barely a decade since he had taken over as the Captain Commander of the Gotei 13 and already the Gotei 13 was threatened by a foe that seemed to come from their very nightmares. Arturo Plateado, a natural arrancar, had brazenly attacked the Seireitei, bent on the destruction of the Soul Society. New to his power, he reluctantly delegated the task of dispatching the arrancar to his subordinates, an act he had come to regret. With each soul reaper that fell to him, Arturo added their powers to his own. The first Lieutenant to fall to him was a sad loss, but the first Captain was the initial crack in their seemingly invincible image. With such power at his fingertips, the other Captains soon could no longer hold their ground to him and fell too. _

_When he at last arrived to face the arrancar, no Captain could stand to be anywhere near the hollow and to his disgrace, not even his own bankai was able to halt the insatiable arrancar's appetite. As he knelt, his body bleeding from a score of cuts, he watched wearily as his foe walked up to him, ready to face his end. The only regret that came to mind as the arrancar's beam saber descended on his neck, was his disappointment that he had failed at protecting the Soul Society._

_Then like a bolt from the heavens, they were both engulfed in a golden light, stunned by its brilliance. In the moment of his distraction, Arturo was struck clean across his chest, a geyser of blood erupting from the wound. Looking up at his saviour, Genryusai was surprised to see a teen clad in black plate armour, wielding a blade that was longer than he was tall and at least half his width at its base. When the teen looked back at him though, he knew that he could no longer call this man a boy, for behind his eyes was a wealth of experience that he could never hope to match._

_The man examined him for a few seconds before bending down and picking up Ryujin Jakka from where it lay, holding it unharmed despite the flames still covering it._

"_Stand up boy," the unknown man commanded and offered his hand out to him. "This is your battle…this is the bastard that has decimated your forces…this filth has made a mockery of the Gotei 13!" the man shouted at him, his voice instilling a sense of rapture in everyone that was within earshot. "Do you really want it to be known that the soul reapers were defeated within their own city?" Seconds passed as the pair stood there in silence, before Genryusai slowly stood on his own and glared at the teen._

"_My name is Genryusai Shigekuni Yamamoto, Captain Commander of the Gotei 13, boy," Genryusai grunted as he accepted his blade once again, the flames flaring higher once it was within his hands once again._

"_Good to know boy," the teen said with a smirk, "then for the record, my name is Ichigo Kurosaki, Crown Prince of the Royal Family and Commander of the Royal Army."_

_End Flashback:_

Since that day, he had trained harder than before in the hopes that he would never have to disappoint the man. Now to know that the man was active in their world once again and assisting someone that he was being told to capture, he couldn't help but feel conflicted.

XXX

Within the Royal Dimension, Isshin watched the replay of his son's escape from the Seireitei. Truly the boy was being more difficult than he thought. While it would've been an easy matter to track him in the Soul Society, searching for him in the World of the Living would be boring and time consuming. Not even the route he used through the Precipice World could be traced since he had forcefully erased his presence from their records. Sighing, he turned to one of the servants standing in the shadows of the room.

"Send for Kirio Hikifune please," he commanded, watching as the servant nodded and disappeared. No more than a few minutes later, the newest member of the Royal Guard appeared before him.

"You wanted to see me Your Highness?" she said with her head bowed. She stood approximately 5'2" with bright blue eyes and shoulder length brown hair, done up in a high ponytail. She was clad in the standard black shihakusho and crimson haori that denoted her as a member of the guard, while a single band on her shoulders ranked her as a junior member.

"Yes, I want you to track down Ichigo for me," he said as he looked down on her, his head idly resting on his hand as he leaned back in his throne. "Tell him that's he's made his point and that it's time to stop acting like a whiny child and come back."

"You want me to convince him to come back Sire?" she asked curiously, flinching as he turned to glare at her.

"Do whatever it takes to convince him Kirio," he barked, dismissing her with a wave of his hand. "Take some others with you if you feel it necessary."

Once she exited the throne room, her shoulders sagged in resignation at the task before her.

'_Why me,' _she whined, pulling on her hair in frustration.

"Something wrong newbie?" she heard someone chuckle in front of her. Opening her eyes, she could see Tatsuki smirking at her with Yasutora or Chad as he came to be known by Ichigo, leaning against one of the pillars that led to the throne room.

"Don't call me that," she pouted, making Tatsuki chuckle even more, while Chad remained silent.

"So what's got you so worried newbie?" Tatsuki asked once again.

"The King has requested that I track Ichigo-sama down and convince him to come back home," she grumbled, missing the look that Tatsuki and Chad shared with one another.

"Need a hand?" Chad queried in his deep baritone voice.

"Huh? You guys want to help me bring him back?" Kirio asked puzzled, considering that these two were Ichigo's best friends before he left.

"Yeah, we need to talk to him as well, so may as well help you at the same time," Tatsuki said as she stood up straight and brushed off her own haori. "Plus I think we could put in a good word for you when we fail."

"You're already expecting us to fail?" she replied in surprise, while Tatsuki rolled her eyes in exasperation.

"Do you honestly expect to be able to succeed in this mission Kirio?" she asked. "After all, we're talking about one of the strongest beings in the afterlife, if not the strongest. Now come on, we've got a lot of ground to cover."

Shaking her head, Kirio trailed after her two 'assistants' in this mission.

XXX

A few weeks had passed since Ichigo and Yoruichi had arrived at the safe house he had on the outskirts of Tokyo. They kept mostly to the area around the house, but neither of them could resist going out and watching as the city was industrialised, with new roads, schools and other institutions being built to move Japan into the modern era.

Even if they had gigai's to help them interact with others, Yoruichi reflected on the fact that she wouldn't be able to do much more than talk with other women or sit around the house and gossip, since woman weren't readily accepted as workers for anything that interested her.

Ichigo himself grew bored with the monotony of it and would either spend time helping those in the area in dire need of help, listening for news of Kisuke, or planning ahead on how he would deal with Aizen.

Over their time together, Yoruichi had come to see a side of the prince that she honestly didn't expect from a warrior and commander. When she knocked on his study door one day, she walked in to find him smiling down at a photo of what looked like a child version of himself, holding each of his sisters in his arms and smiling at the camera. Standing with her arms wrapped around him was a figure she assumed to be his mother as she placed a kiss on his cheek, while his father beamed down at the four of them. Idly running a finger over their faces, he stopped when he noticed Yoruichi's presence looking over his shoulder.

"You miss them," she stated, watching as he placed the picture in a desk drawer.

"I miss the times we used to share Yoruichi," he muttered, pouring over his notes again.

"What happened to them?" she asked curiously, wondering if he would shut her out. She almost thought he wouldn't say anything until his shoulders slumped and he took out another photo. In this one, he was kneeling before his father with his torso bare, his father's blade lightly touching his chest.

"I took on the position as Commander of the Royal army," he whispered, "and with it, the responsibility of safeguarding our territories from threats that proved too great for the soul reapers to handle. It took me away from my family and friends a lot, but like you'd expect, I made new friends…and watched them die in my arms more often than not. Each death was a stain on my soul and soon enough I began to doubt why my father would not grant us more power or aid to stop these threats. He took it as meaning that I didn't want to deal with them and pulled me from the frontlines. Without me there to lead them…the losses grew out of control until I grew agitated enough to return without his consent."

Looking straight ahead, she could see that his eyes had grown lifeless as he was lost in memories of his past.

"Each time I would be reprimanded for doing what I felt was the right thing, but I grew used to it. My mother would be supportive of my actions, but she still expressed her disapproval when I came home injured."

Reaching over, she gave his shoulder a squeeze, while he turned to look her in the eye.

"Sounds like you were the ideal commander for those that faced those horrors," she said as she gave him what she hoped was a reassuring smile. "Regardless of what others might have said, seeing you on the frontlines must have pushed everyone to survive that much more."

Pinching the bridge of his nose, Ichigo closed his eyes and tried to calm himself, his dwelling on the past not helping matters of the present. He stiffened when he felt Yoruichi's fingers thread through his hair and began massaging his scalp.

"What do you think you're doing Yoruichi?" he asked with a hint of annoyance in his tone.

"What does it look like I'm doing," she whispered into his ear, not pausing in her ministrations. "I'm helping you to relax." Sliding her hands down his neck, they came to a rest on his shoulders, which she began to knead and mould under her hands. His flesh was not malleable like others she had done this for and was more like warm blooded steel. Giving in to her actions, he rested his head on his desk as she worked, uttering a groan every now and then.

When her fingers started to drift a little lower though, he abruptly stood, surprising her and making her fall back. She didn't fall to the floor as he reached out and grabbed her by her wrists when she was halfway to the floor.

"Sorry for that and thank you Yoruichi," he said as he fixed his kimono. As he turned to walk away, he paused and gave her a light kiss to her cheek, making her blush crimson, despite her skin not showing it clearly.

Since then, they had warmed up a bit more with each other, but it didn't progress much more than that. Now as the sun shone brightly in the sky, Yoruichi reclined on the grass, enjoying the warmth while she held a book from his collection in her hand. Hearing a knock at the door startled her since Ichigo wouldn't knock at his own home and no one would come so far out anyway.

Standing, she brushed her kimono off and walked towards the door, readying herself to fight should she need to. When she opened the door, she was surprised to find a woman she had not seen in over ten years.

"Kirio-chan is that you?" she asked unsure of her own eyes, while the junior member of the Royal Guard also blinked confusedly at finding this woman of all people.

"I could say the same for you Yoruichi-chan," Kirio said as she raised an eyebrow at the woman. "Can you please tell me what you are doing here?"

"She's here as my guest," Ichigo said from behind Yoruichi as he appeared in a flash, startling them both, while he placed a hand on Yoruichi's shoulder. "The better question is what you are doing here Hikifune."

"My apologies Ichigo-sama," she said with a bow, "but your father requested that I find you and bring you home." At her words, Ichigo narrowed his eyes at her and scoffed.

"And he sends the youngest member of the guard to do this?" he spat. "He's really losing his mind if he thinks you can force me to come home."

"She's not alone Ichigo," said a female voice behind Kirio.

Looking past her old friend, Yoruichi could make out two more teenage looking members of the Royal Guard. One was a lean girl with black hair and brown eyes and the other a tall muscular man with brown hair and dark skin, similar to her own. Ichigo's fists clenched at the sight of the two people, his eyes piercing into them and making them flinch under his gaze.

"Yoruichi, I just prepared a fresh pot of tea," he said in a crisp tone, "why don't you and Hikifune catch up while I have a word with these two." None of them questioned him as his tone, as well as his rising reiatsu told them he was not in the mood for arguments.

After Yoruichi and Kirio had disappeared into the house, Ichigo turned to glare at his two friends, who once again quailed under his glare.

"Look Ichigo we're sorry that…" Tatsuki began, only to fall silent as he grabbed her and Chad by their collars and dragged them off into the forest. Once they were out of earshot of the house, he tossed them against the side of a tree.

"Sorry won't cut it this time Tatsuki," he growled at them, his teeth gritted while they recovered to sit back against the tree.

"Dammit Ichigo can't you at least wait to hear what we have to say first!" Tatsuki shouted at him, while Chad grunted next to her.

"Well spit it out then!" he shouted right back at her.

"What did you expect us to do?" she yelled at him. "Regardless of our connection to you, he is still the King and as such we cannot speak out against him. You know that, so why did you put us on the spot like that?"

"Put you on the spot!" he sputtered. "Is that the first thing you have to say? I specifically asked for you to speak your minds. Shouldn't you have at least trusted me to protect you from any negative consequences of your actions like I have countless times before?"

"But those weren't against the King for fuck's sake!" she yelled at him, standing up and moving to stop in front of him, both mere inches away from each other.

"You're right they weren't, because in those moments blood was shed in your defence," he spat. "Blood…that should mean something after everything we've been through. Time and time again I fought side by side with you two, protecting you just as much, if not more than myself and what does that get me? Your silence that's what. It's not even just the battles we've been in, I was there for you guys since you were infants, I stood up for you even when no one else would or could."

"Ichigo," Chad rumbled, "we didn't expect you to go this far though. Had we known, we would've said whatever you wanted us to."

"Well that's the problem isn't it," Ichigo replied looking down at Chad, "you all assumed that I was just going to take it on the cheek and leave it at that, but no longer will I subject myself to such abuse. No, now I will fix this situation as I see fit and to hell with what my father wants." As he turned to walk back to the house, he glared over his shoulder at them. "You tell my father that if he wants me back, it's going to be on my terms and my terms alone and if he doesn't like that…he knows where to come to let me know and then I'll kick his ass again." Vanishing in a flash step, he left the pair to digest his words.

"So we failed," Chad said, moving to stand next to Tatsuki.

"Just like I said we would," she whispered, "but at least we got speak to him and at least try to explain ourselves to him."

XXX

Aww poor Tatsuki and Chad. Also poor Kirio, hell I wouldn't want the task of bringing Ichigo home.

Right now a couple of things.

The interactions between Ichigo and Yoruichi I feel is in character since we all know how Yoruichi can be.

While Ichigo is indeed powerful, he cannot save everyone. Nor is he going to just go out and kill Aizen. He would first want to know what he plans to do etc.

Can't think of much else to say for now so…what did you like, love or hate? Please let me know in your reviews.


	4. 4: Fated Souls and Reunions

**When the Heavens Fail.**

Hmm last chapter for a bit and I wondered how to go out with a really big bang. Sadly I couldn't think of much, but I hope you enjoy it all the same. Thanks for the reviews and continued support.

Disclaimer: I do not own Bleach.

"Normal speech"

'_Thoughts/Inner Speech'_

"_Kido/Zanpakuto release"_

"**Zanpakuto"**

XXX

Chapter 4: Fated Souls and Reunions.

Hearing the familiar thudding of footsteps from the living room, Yoruichi sighed and stretched herself out on the window ledge she was lying on. The days following the visit from Tatsuki, Chad and Kirio had left Ichigo restless and brooding, thus why he would occasionally pace up and down, his footsteps disrupting any nap she tried to take.

"Would you just calm down, or go out and break something to get rid of your stress," she growled as she leapt from the window and landed on his shoulder, digging her claws into his skin.

"Sorry Yoruichi," he grumbled as he reached back to scratch her ears, an act he found that calmed him, just as much as it did her. "I just keep expecting that bastard to show up any day now."

"So are you worried that he's going to kick your ass or what?" she asked as she arched herself against his fingers, shivering in pleasure.

"Worried about the damage to the surrounding area more like it," he answered. "You know what a fight between the two of us would be like."

"Mm," she purred, half listening as she curled around his neck, while her tail trailed up and down his throat. Hearing the soft purring of her sleep, he sat down gently so as to not jostle her.

"Say Yoruichi," he began tentatively, "how did you acquire that form?"

"An accidental discovery while I was trying to talk to my zanpakuto," she mumbled. "I found a piece of my soul that didn't seem to even fit me, but at the same time felt like a second skin I was used to wearing." Cracking a single eye open to look at him she continued. "After a while, I just sort of kept going back to it and one day, I felt that connection that I was looking for and hey presto, I can change into a cat."

"I see," he said as he rubbed his chin thoughtfully. "I wonder if I could learn it."

"Wouldn't you have already found something foreign within your soul by now?" she asked as she welcomed anything that would stop him from brooding.

"I don't know," he shrugged, "but my zanpakuto's always had an affinity for nature, so maybe I can ask him about it." Closing his eyes, he slipped away from the real world and into his inner world. Reaching out for Zangetsu, he found him waiting at the border of the forest.

"**I know why you have come Ichigo," **Zangetsu said as he turned to regard his master. **"And I must say you are quite dense for not noticing it before."**

"What do you mean?" he asked, puzzled at why his zanpakuto was calling him an idiot.

"**All this time you have been coming into your inner world and you have never once questioned why this forest is here?" **Zangetsu asked incredulously, while Ichigo only shrugged his shoulders in answer.

"It was part of my inner world and a place you went to relax, why would I question it?" he answered back.

"**Yes, but have you ever bothered to explore it?"**

"Well…no," he replied, "there never was much that pulled me towards it unless I was looking for you."

"**Then perhaps you should start now," **the spirit said and gestured for Ichigo to enter. Walking into the forest, Ichigo tried to find that which didn't seem to fit with what he knew of himself, but after walking for a few hours, he gave up and returned to his body.

"Well?" Yoruichi asked from behind him, her voice indicating she was back in her human form.

"It's been staring me in the face this entire time and I've never noticed it," he said tiredly, as he rubbed his eyes. Turning around to face her, he rapidly blushed as she stood there completely naked before him. "What the hell Yoruichi?"

"What?" she asked innocently, "you've seen me like this plenty of times already, so I thought I could forgo the effort of putting on those constricting clothes again. Don't forget that if you ever do find a second form, your clothes might feel just that little bit more uncomfortable."

"Just please put on a gown or something," he ground out, trying not to look at her any more than he had already. Chuckling she disappeared, leaving him to sigh as he placed his head in his hands and tried to get his arousal under control.

"**She really derives a bit too much enjoyment from tormenting you so, doesn't she?" **Zangetsu asked from his mind. **"But considering her beauty I can't for the life of me understand why you deny her so much."**

'_I'm trying to stop a madman, I didn't exactly come here to find an epic romance,' _he replied.

"**True, but that doesn't mean you should keep fighting this feeling, nor should you so callously brush her flirtations aside," **the spirit replied.

Grumbling his understanding, Ichigo watched as Yoruichi walked back into the room with lunch on a tray, his face burning up once again at the light robe she wore, tied loosely at her waist such that it only covered her dignity while exposing her long legs and generous bust.

"T-Thank you Yoruichi," he stuttered out, accepting a bowl from her, while he watched her sit across from him with a grin on her face.

XXX

Over the next few days, Ichigo returned to the forest in his inner world and wandered aimlessly trying to find something, anything really. While outside it, Yoruichi would throw a hints or suggestions every now and then, but couldn't really say for certain since they both possessed different worlds.

As he walked through it for the forest for what seemed like the hundredth time, he heard a dull roar coming from his left. Rushing in the direction of it, he found himself along a rocky shore, with a raging ocean in front of him. He could feel the cool spray of the salt water as it coated his skin each time the waves crashed onto the rocks. Looking across the horizon, he could make out a large figure in the sky making its way towards him at surprising speed. As it drew nearer, he could make out wings and talons, but not much more from the height it was at, until with no warning it dived down towards him. Despite a small sense of panic within him, Ichigo maintained his composure and waited as it approached him. The next thing he knew was a stabbing pain in his chest as it struck him dead on.

Outside his mind, Yoruichi sat and watched him as he meditated in the garden. She became alarmed when his body fell over and he began to jerk haphazardly on the ground. Before she could move to still him though, he was engulfed in a pale white smoke, similar to what engulfed her with each transformation. A minute later, the smoke began to disperse and with it, Yoruichi's eyes bugged out at his form.

Struggling to its clawed feet was a large eagle easily 3'5" tall with black feathers dominating its body, while pure white feathers were found around its thighs and along the middle of its wings and tail. Stretching out its wings, they fanned out and covered the area in shadow as its wingspan reached a phenomenal 8'5" Looking at its beak; it was 5.6 inches long and curved at its end, its deadly appearance only matched by the razor sharp 2 inch talons on its feet. Overall, it was easily the most fearsome bird she had ever seen and when it folded its wings back and stood straight, it matched the poise and regal aura that he normally radiated to those around him.

"Well you're certainly not built for stealth," she commented as she looked him up and down, still slightly unsettled that he was two-thirds her height. "But being able to fly…that's got to be so amazing right now."

"Indeed," he replied, only to snap his beak shut in surprise, while Yoruichi's eyes popped once again and a mischievous grin spread across her face.

"Say something else Ichigo," she said hopping up and down in excitement, while he seemed to groan on the spot.

"Yoruichi…" he groaned, only it came out as an erotic feminine moan, making Yoruichi fall over in laughter.

"O-Oh t-this is…is too much," she choked out from the floor, while he tried to hide his head under his wing, hearing Zangetsu himself also laughing at him.

"Shut up Yoruichi!" he whined, sounding like a whiny teenage girl. "So my voice changes to a girl's, yours changes gender when you change forms too," he grumbled.

"I…I'm sorry _Ichigo-chan_," she sputtered still rolling on the floor in laughter. "Oh w-wait I should call you _old woman_ now, or even _grandma_." While she was laughing though, she failed to notice Ichigo walk over to her, raising a single clawed foot to hover above her face.

"Do you really want to call me that," he said in a deadly calm voice, while Yoruichi froze at the black talons approaching her face.

"Uh no," she whimpered as they began to dig into her skin, not cutting in just yet.

"Good," Ichigo said and flapped his wings and propelled himself backward, kicking up a large cloud of dust in his wake. _'This'll definitely take some getting used to,'_ he thought and ruffled his wings again to make them settle back more comfortably. Once Yoruichi had recovered, he watched as she carefully made her way towards him, biting her lip as she continued to stare at him.

"Is there something you want?" he asked, watching as she kept eyeing his wings.

"May…May I touch them please?" she asked, pointing at his wings.

"Uh, well…I guess," he replied, stretching out his right wing as she walked over to him. As her fingers roamed over the appendage, she took great care not to bend any of his feathers the wrong way, while her fingers admired how silky they felt. Moving to his spine, she ran her hand down it, watching as he reflexively arched his back into her hand. Similar to how she enjoyed having her ears scratched, she found a spot at the base of his neck that made him shiver each time she touched it.

"I…um…I think I'm going to try and fly," he spoke hesitantly, making her stop running her fingers over his feathers.

"Be careful then," she warned him, "it took me a few days to get used to having a tail and using it to balance my steps and jumps.

"I'll try," he said in an amused tone, his eyes shining with excitement. Stretching his wings out again, he flapped them cautiously, feeling himself lift ever so slightly from the ground. With one mighty surge, he found himself off the ground and with several more he found himself in the air at least 30 feet above the house.

He spun haphazardly for a bit, until he found out how to use his tail to balance his body out and how to use his wings to glide, rather than constantly flapping them. The pure thrill he got out of soaring through the air was unimaginable, even if he was used to flash stepping through the air; it was simply nothing like flying through it, aided only by your own limbs. When he felt his wings begin to tire, he angled back towards the house and dived. Overall it seemed like a good idea, but he had vastly overestimated his ability to stop and thus crashed into the ground, digging up the grass as he rolled over it. With a puff of smoke, he returned to his human form and stretched, rubbing his sore arms and shoulders, while Yoruichi howled with laughter where she sat on the wooden deck.

"Now what?" he asked in exasperation, finding the answer a second later as he felt a breeze where there really shouldn't be. Looking down at himself, he blushed at the fact that he was revealing himself to Yoruichi and frantically looked around trying to find his clothing. Noticing a heap of tattered garments, he hurried over and slipped on his pants and grimaced at how badly the shirt was torn at the sleeves, probably from when his wings had expanded. "Great, just great," he muttered and walked back into the house, tossing the ruined shirt in Yoruichi's face as she continued to laugh at him.

XXX

With the discovery of his new form, Ichigo had just like Yoruichi taken to being in it more than his human form. He had also found the joy that was surprising her with his naked body, but he had the sneaking suspicion that she merely acted that way so that he would do it more often. With some practice, he soon achieved a level of competency in flying that meant he didn't crash every time he landed and was now working on his fishing skills.

Thus we find the pair of them at a secluded beach with Yoruichi tanning her nude self on the sand while she watched Ichigo circle over the water. Growing bored with watching him, she leaned back on her hands and slipped into a nap, only to wake up when she felt water dripping down her stomach a few minutes later. Cracking an eye open, she could see Ichigo hovering above her with a large blue fin tuna in his grip.

"Don't you dare Ichigo!" she yelled at him, only to yelp as he dropped the fish down on her with a loud splat. Cursing to herself, Yoruichi held the specimen up, noting that it was at least 3 feet in length and weighing at least 20kg. Grimacing at where his talons had sunk into its flesh, she looked down at some of the blood covering her stomach and chest and glared at Ichigo as he landed next to her and ruffled his feathers to get rid of some of the water.

"Now look what you've done," she growled at him and stood up pointing at the blood on her. "At least tell me the water's warm?"

"Well it's no frozen sea," he said as he assumed his human form and ran a hand through his hair.

Grumbling at him, she walked off to the water, grinning as she swayed her hips at him and making him groan in frustration. Stepping into the water she shivered slightly at how cold it was, but quickly shook it off as she dived under its surface.

As Ichigo watched her surface with the blue sky as her background and her tossing her hair back while she stood waist deep in the water, he couldn't help but think of how closely she resembled a goddess at the moment. Smirking to himself, he stood and walked into the water after her.

As she brushed off the lines of blood on her skin, she grew alarmed when two arms wrapped around her waist and pulled her back into a warm body. Looking over her shoulder, she could see Ichigo nuzzling into her neck, while his hands rested on her hips.

"Do you have any idea what you do to me sometimes," he whispered into her ear, while she gripped his hands with her own.

"Maybe," she moaned slightly, as his arms wrapped around her in a tight hug bringing them even closer together. "Do you have any idea what you do to me?" she quipped back at him.

"Maybe," he said and turned her to face him. "Maybe we're both just teasing each other beyond what we can handle." Leaning in slowly, he captured her lips in a tender kiss, while her arms wrapped around his neck, bringing him in closer. After the need for air, became just too much for either of them, they broke apart with the water washing over them gently.

"You know it's considered polite to buy the girl dinner first, before taking liberties with her," she whispered, leaning her forehead against his.

"That's what the fish is for," he said with a grin, restraining himself from taking this any further lest he drive her off.

"Hmm, well I wouldn't mind some sushi or tuna steak right about now," she mumbled as she separated from him and took his hand, leading him back to shore. As they made their way back home, with Yoruichi flash stepping in her feline form, while Ichigo flew overhead with their dinner, she came across a newspaper article that almost had her crashing into a wall. Grumbling at the offending sheet, she almost shredded it in irritation, until her eyes caught an advert in the corner of the paper. It was for a new candy store that had recently opened in Karakura Town and how its owner was an eccentric man that claimed to have the best sweets in this world or the next.

XXX

As the last customer was ushered out the door of his tiny shop, Kisuke released a tired sigh and began to close up the shop. Truly he had forgotten how fast paced the World of the Living was, as with his advert placed in several of the local and neighbouring towns newspapers, he had attracted a slew of customers who took it to mean that his products came from the Western world.

Being the shrewd businessmen he was, he happily confirmed their assumption and watched as his stock literally flew off the shelves. Sadly several small scuffles broke out needing him and Tessai to resolve them. What made it even worse, were the people sneaking off into the back of the shop in search of more stock. He truly didn't want to know what would happen if someone accidently discovered the underground basement he had built and also the occupants within at the moment. He didn't want to attract so much attention to himself so soon after escaping to this world, but he needed funds if he was going to be able to help build the Visored their own home so that they wouldn't need to depend on him. As he tried to close the sliding door to his shop, it came to an abrupt halt.

"I'm sorry but we're closed for today," he said with a smile as he looked up. To his confusion there was no one there, but still the door refused to budge. Looking down, his eyes shot open at the little black cat that was holding the door open with a paw, its tail swishing back and forth behind it.

"Not even open for an old friend Kisuke?" Yoruichi asked in her masculine voice, raising an eyebrow at him.

"But of course Yoruichi-san," he said as his weariness vanished and he slid the door open and ushered her in. "Could I offer you something to drink, milk perhaps?" he asked with a smirk as he led her to the dining room.

"A cup of tea would be nice," she said as she transformed into her human form. As she seated herself, she could here Kisuke announce her arrival to Tessai and his request for a pot of tea. When her friend returned, she could see that he had discarded his shihakusho and now wore a green shirt and pants with a dark green haori over it. He had also acquired a green and white stripped bucket hat to complete his look. She could see that Benihime's sheath had been turned into a cane which he kept close to him at all times.

"Would you like something to wear? I think Lisa might have something in your size?" he offered as he seated himself across from her.

"No thank you, my friend should be here soon with something appropriate," she said with a grin, making Kisuke worry at who her friend could be.

A rapping at the window in the next room startled him and he gingerly got to his feet to answer it. When he drew back the screen, he yelped and leapt back as a gigantic eagle flew into the room with a bundle wrapped to its right leg and landed next to Yoruichi.

"You know that was awfully mean to leave me back there like that Yoruichi-chan," the eagle said, in a distinctly female voice, as it offered the leg with the package to her to remove. "I had to rely on my hearing and sight to keep track of you."

"Sorry Ichigo," she said with a grin as she relieved the eagle of its burden, "but I really wanted to see this fool again."

"Understandable," the eagle said as it ruffled its feathers and settled down on its legs. When Tessai entered the room with a tray of cups and a pot of tea, he did a double take and blinked four times before he moved to set the tray down.

"Is this another goddess like you, Yoruichi-san?" Kisuke asked nervously, eyeing the eagle's claws and beak with apprehension, edging back as the eagle turned to glare at him, while Yoruichi chuckled.

With a puff of smoke, the feathers retracted back into Ichigo's skin and he stood up to his full height glaring down at Kisuke.

"Watch who you call a goddess _boy_," he growled as he and Yoruichi slipped into a pair of pants and shirt.

"Boy? That's a funny thing to say _Strawberry_," Kisuke teased back, his eyes holding a mischievous glint.

His comment earned him a look of loathing from Ichigo, as said teen cracked his knuckles threateningly.

"Watch what you call me _brat_," Ichigo said with a grin, "because I will teach you what pain truly is."

As the two continued to stare down at each other, Yoruichi slipped in between them, pressing a hand against both their chests to stop them.

"Enough," she muttered, "Ichigo calm down and Kisuke," she turned to glare at her old friend, "behave before I beat you into a bloody pulp."

Seeing the serious look on her face, Kisuke quailed before her and took a seat, while Tessai went to fetch another cup for Ichigo. When the other two sat down though, Kisuke was surprised to see Yoruichi almost seat herself in Ichigo's lap, while he wrapped an arm around her waist possessively.

"Sorry, but when did this happen?" Kisuke asked as he pointed between the two of them. "And furthermore, who are you?"

"He helped me escape from the Soul Society Kisuke," Yoruichi answered, "and as for whom he is; well he's an exile just like us now."

"Oh and what squad were you in?" Kisuke asked politely and took a sip of his tea.

"I wasn't part of the Gotei 13," Ichigo began as a grin spread across his face, waiting until Kisuke took another sip of tea before he continued. "I was part of the Royal Army." And just like clockwork Kisuke began to choke on his tea, his eyes tearing up as he coughed violently.

"T-The R-Royal Army," he choked out, "but...why…what made you decide to get involved?"

"We have a mutual enemy, Sosuke Aizen," Ichigo said, watching as a dark look flashed across Kisuke's face. "As such I decided to come myself to help and just so happened to run into Yoruichi, who needed my help just as much as I needed hers."

Next to him Yoruichi grinned at the memory of their first meeting, while Kisuke's mouth hung open, until she leaned across the table and shut it.

"Is that really so unbelievable Kisuke?" she asked innocently enough, if it wasn't for the grin on her face. "The way you look right now it seems as if you think that I wouldn't be worth saving to someone like him."

"No of course not," Kisuke replied, waving his hands in front of him as if to stave off an attack. "It's just surprising that's all."

Chuckling at Yoruichi's teasing, Ichigo turned serious as he looked at Kisuke.

"My apologies for rushing this matter along, but do you know where I can find the soul reapers that were experimented on by Aizen?" he asked, noting how Kisuke fidgeted under his gaze.

"Why would you want to speak to them?" Kisuke shot back in his jovial tone, his eyes though watching for any hint of aggression from Ichigo.

"I just want to ask them some questions and perhaps offer my help," Ichigo replied, holding his hands up in surrender.

"He's telling the truth Kisuke," Yoruichi said as she placed her empty cup down. "He won't harm them unless they somehow manage to royally piss him off."

Seeing that his oldest friend was willing to trust this man, Kisuke sighed and turned to Tessai.

"Take him to the underground training area please Tessai-san," he said quietly and turned to face Ichigo again. "I must warn you that they have been going through a particularly stressful time at the moment and might not be so receptive to strangers."

"Thanks for the warning, but I doubt that they could offer that much of a challenge to me anyway," Ichigo said with a smirk as he followed Tessai out of the room and to a ladder in the floor.

As he started to make his way down, he heard the shopkeeper shriek, "YOU'RE DATING WHO?"

XXX

And sadly we come to the end of yet another chapter. I know I'm sad about it too, since it was just getting to the good part too.

Notes on the chapter:

1 – The eagle I based off Ichigo's form on is called the Steller's Sea Eagle, an eagle found in East Asia. They really are quite beautiful and are considered the largest eagle by mass. I've seen people turn him into a cat and dog and those just seemed so…boring. I mean an eagle is just so…awesome. What do you think?

2 – I know it might seem like I'm rushing into the romance, but it was just one kiss and also there have been hints of moments between the two over the course of several weeks in the last two chapters. I'm still debating whether I even want to add lemons to the story or not. If I do they will be hosted elsewhere.

3 – I couldn't figure out how to track down Kisuke alone, so why not help them along with that dying written medium. Of course it wasn't dying back in the 1900's.

So as I bid you farewell for the moment, don't worry we shall come back to this eventually.

So what did you like, love or hate? Let me know please.


	5. 5: Reluctant Allies, Deceitful Enemies

**When the Heavens Fail.**

Welcome back once again dear readers. Thanks for all the reviews for the last chapter as well as your participation in the last poll. Although I must say, with the end results, I feel like I was being punished. The final tally was:

1st (7 votes each) – Toshiro, Senna, Ryo, Uryu

5th – (0 votes each) – Rukia and Momo

You can see my predicament. Anyway I've made my decision, now you just have to wait and see who I picked. *grumbles about extra work*

Disclaimer: I do not own Bleach.

"Normal speech"

'_Thoughts/Inner Speech'_

"_Kido/Zanpakuto release"_

"**Zanpakuto"**

XXX

Chapter 5: Reluctant Allies, Deceitful Enemies.

As he sat around the glowing orange barrier that Hachi erected, Shinji Hirako watched as his fellow exile Lisa Yadomaru, faced off against a hollowfied Hiyori Sarugaki. It had been several weeks since they were forcibly hollowfied by his Lieutenant, Sosuke Aizen and then stabilised by Kisuke Urahara. Thinking back on that night, he groaned and let his head sink into his hands. All the time he thought that he was in fact keeping Aizen under close observation and despite it all, he was revealed to have been played for a fool. The consequences of his overconfidence were arrayed in front of him right now. His friends were now exiles and traitors in the eyes of Central 46, meaning that even if they could get their hollow-side under control, they would still be in danger of being hunted down for their supposed crimes. Not to mention the fact that their saviour and current benefactor, now an outlaw too, was facing the same consequences they were. Cursing Aizen under his breath, he turned to look around at the others.

Across from him, he could see Kensei arguing with Mashiro about training to help him improve the time that he was able to maintain his mask for, while Mashiro was throwing back childish insults about why he couldn't just be like her and keep it on indefinitely. Chuckling to himself, Shinji turned away from them; no matter where they went or why, the two would always rub one another the wrong way.

Nearby sitting on some flat boulders was Love and Rose, the pair of them listening to some record that he couldn't hear over the fight in front of him, while they read over a newspaper that got delivered to the store every day. Nothing really changed about their respective personalities, but it was clear to him that neither was particularly fond or displeased with their current lot in life. That didn't stop them from wanting to rip Aizen to shreds if they ever found him again. Next to him, Hachi gave a soft grunt as Hiyori was knocked back into the barrier.

"You gonna be okay Hachi?" he asked in mild concern, watching the man turn his head slightly to look at him.

"Of course Hirako-san," he replied politely. "Might I ask how long they've been fighting for already?"

"Forty-five minutes according to my watch," Shinji replied. "It'll be time for someone else to step in soon. Looking back at Hiyori, he could see that her hollow form was taking on the shape of a beetle, with a skeletal mask forming across her face. The fact that he could see very little of her own skin left, indicated that the hollowfication was reaching the point of no return. _'Hurry up ya idiot, time's running out for ya.'_

His thoughts were disturbed by the sound of footsteps coming down the ladder behind him. Reaching out with his senses, he could feel Tessai walking towards them, leading another unknown person behind him. Standing to his feet, he called out to Kensei, tossing him the timer and heading off towards them.

Flashing into view in front of the tall man, he looked past to see a fairly young teenager with orange hair, dressed in a white collared shirt, black pants and bare feet. The most curious thing about him though, was the fact that his power was barely discernible from everyone around him.

"And who's this Tessai-san?" Shinji asked, his eyes running over Ichigo, trying to gauge his power to see if he was indeed a threat.

"A friend of Yoruichi-dono, Hirako-san," Tessai said in his deep baritone. "He wanted to meet you and your group and since Yoruichi-dono vouched for him, Kisuke asked me to lead him to you."

"I see," Shinji said, his tone filled with suspicion. "So tell my boy, what's your name?"

"Ichigo Kurosaki," he replied with a grin on his face. "And watch who you call boy Shinji Hirako, I won't hesitate to put you in your place for that."

Before Shinji could retort, the sound of the barrier shattering and Lisa's frantic shout echoed out across the chamber. Turning around, Shinji watched as a hollowfied Hiyori charged straight at them, her eyes boring into the stranger next to him, her anger and distrust radiated clearly in her reiatsu.

"Look you need to get out of here. With the way she is at the moment, you'll be no help and simply serve as cannon fodder for her," Shinji shouted as he drew his zanpakuto and stood in front of the two of them. As he and Hiyori were about to clash though, a medium-sized Byakurai shot past him, impacting with Hiyori's mask and sending her skipping across the ground like a stone. Turning back he could see Ichigo smirking at him.

"In the way am I? Cannon fodder am I?" Ichigo said as he walked past Shinji, the rest of the exiles watching him now. "Believe me when I say that it would take more than one hollowfied Lieutenant to push me to release my shikai _boy. _Now sit back and relax, I've been in need of a good spar these last few days anyway." Pushing past Shinji, Ichigo held his hand to his waist, the sheath of his zanpakuto forming as he did so and drew his blade with ease. Tessai had walked past him to help Hachi erect the barrier once again, while Lisa, Kensei, Love and Rose watched Ichigo warily.

From her spot in the dirt, the hollowfied Hiyori leapt to her feet, charging at Ichigo in a blind rage, her released zanpakuto bearing down on his neck in a wild swing. Calmly staring at her, Ichigo brought his blade up to block the blow, sparks grating of their blades as they clashed. Despite her increased strength and shikai though, she couldn't bring him to even give an inch to her, much to the surprise of the other exiles.

Putting his weight behind the blade lock, Ichigo flung her back, sending her crashing into the barrier, the shimmering orange wall cracking slightly before it was repaired. Not deterred for even a second, Hiyori charged at him again, making him sigh at the predictability of her attacks. Despite her stabs and slashes, he managed to calmly avoid the blows by either dodging to the side, or leaning back to avoid the blow. Catching her blade against his own, he twisted it in her grip, hearing her wrist snap as her zanpakuto went flying and followed it up with a kick straight to her sternum, sending her skidding in the dirt.

"Who is this guy Shinji?" Kensei asked, staring down at the timer as it passed the fifty minute mark.

"I don't know, Tessai just said that he was a friend of Yoruichi's," Shinji said in disbelief as Ichigo stood there waiting for Hiyori to make her move.

"And indeed he is a very good friend of mine," Yoruichi replied, flashing into view behind them, wearing clothing similar to Ichigo, but it was looser around her body.

Behind her they could see Kisuke grumbling and nursing a bruised cheek that he no doubt received for teasing her just a little too much. Their attention was brought back to the fight as Hiyori burst from the rubble, a pair of thin, fibrous wings fluttering behind her back, allowing her to hover in the air. She continued in her reckless charges, swooping past Ichigo time and time again, kicking up clouds of dust and small rocks as she flew past.

The clouds of dust soon obscured their view, leaving them staring at the silhouette of the two fighters, the sound of steel clashing with hardened bone sounding dull compared to the ring of steel on steel. It quickly came to a head when after yet another fly-by, the sound of bone colliding with flesh echoed across the room with a muted thud. Seeing both combatants standing still, everyone with the exception of Yoruichi and Kisuke assumed that Hiyori had finally struck her target and impaled him, with some part of her form. When the dust cleared though, their jaws dropped to the ground as Ichigo stood there, holding on to the horn on her forehead, keeping her out of arm's reach and immobile despite her frantic attempts at freeing herself.

"Told you not to worry about him, but it looks like he's getting quite bored with this. It's almost like he was disappointed with something," Yoruichi commented with a frown, while Ichigo calmly lifted Hiyori up by her mask and tossed her across the dirt again.

To their horror, when Hiyori stood up again, she opened her maw and began to charge a cero in her jaws. Before Shinji or the others could pull their masks on and intervene, she fired the doom blast at Ichigo, the roaring ball of crimson energy tearing the ground apart as it raced towards him. To his credit, the exiled prince didn't look remotely concerned, as the blast approached him, exploding and creating a roaring inferno that spiralled into the air and impacted against the roof, forcing them all to shield their eyes from the brightness.

A sickening crack shook them from their reverie, as the shell around Hiyori splintered and fell apart, revealing a cut and bruised soul reaper with just a horned mask on her head. Falling backwards, the mask crumbled away and revealed her panting for breath with her eyes closed.

"Well done Hiyori," Ichigo said from within the cloud of smoke, dispersing it with a pulse of reiatsu. Looking at him now, they could see an unmarked Danku in front of him, leaving him and the ground he stood on completely unharmed, while the front and sides was torn asunder. Dispelling it and his zanpakuto, he walked back to the others, smirking at them as their faces reflected shock at his unmarked appearance. They were further shocked when Yoruichi walked over and pecked him on his cheek, eliciting the first actual reaction from him, as his face heat up.

"Show off," she whispered in his ear, softly enough for the others not to hear, while he wrapped an arm around her waist.

"Uh…yeah," he sputtered, not looking her in the eye. "Now that, that's all sorted, I'd like a word with Hirako and Urahara," he said, walking back towards the ladder. Sharing a look with Shinji, Kisuke sighed and nodded his head, indicating that he shouldn't argue and just go along with it. Looking at where Hiyori lay, he could see both Hachi and Tessai tending to her, while the others went back to their previous activities. Sighing he followed after the three of them, finding them all seated in the dining room, Ichigo and Yoruichi next to each other, with Kisuke across from them.

"Now then, as you are no doubt wondering who I am," Ichigo began, looking pointedly at Shinji, "I'll tell you only that I was part of the Royal Army and a high ranking officer in it. Maybe later on you'll come to know what my actual position was. For now I just want to know everything that you can tell me about your former Lieutenant, Sosuke Aizen."

Keeping his face schooled in a neutral expression, Shinji was inwardly slumping at why Ichigo was able to deflect Hiyori so easily, for even the weakest of the Royal Army could probably deal with her without breaking a sweat.

"There's only so much I can tell you really," Shinji began with a shrug. "Considering the resources at your disposal, you could probably find out all that there is about him and more." Looking up at Ichigo, he could see a pained look flash across his face, before disappearing.

"I am no longer a member of the Army, as such I don't have access to those resources as you put it," Ichigo replied. "All I do know of him is that his zanpakuto is an illusionary type and not water type as he claims and that he has been sacrificing countless Rukongai souls to his Hogyoku." Hearing these words, Kisuke paled quite drastically, while Ichigo turned to stare at him.

"I see you understand the full gravity of the situation Urahara and I'm sorry to say this, but he's had his Hogyoku far longer than you've had yours. The only silver lining of your exile is that it's put your Hogyoku out of his reach for now, but that is not an advantage that we can count on for much longer," he said with a sigh, running a hand over his face.

"What will you do now then?" Kisuke asked the former prince.

"It seems that we have two primary tasks," he answered. "First is the security or destruction of your Hogyoku. And second, we need to investigate Aizen as discretely as possible. That includes what he plans to do with the Hogyoku, why he's been trying to increase his own power so drastically. I don't simply want to face him in a fight; in fact it would probably be better if we can expose him first for the traitor he is, before we make any move against him."

"The Hogyoku Kisuke can handle from here," Yoruichi said, sharing a look with her long-time friend. "The part that bothers me is how do we go about investigating Aizen? He's currently a Lieutenant in the Gotei 13 and given enough time, he will rise to the rank of Captain. Not to mention the fact that he would know if any of the three of us are looking for him, not to mention he will find out about you eventually," she said pointing at Ichigo.

"True," Ichigo admitted, nodding his head at her. "But I am also in the best possible position to move around the Seireitei undetected at the moment. As such I will lead us on that front when the time comes. What are your plans for now Urahara?"

"For now? At the moment I'm just trying to build up my resources again. Hirako-san and the others still need a space to stay of their own, not to mention the resources I need in order to actually get my work up and running," Kisuke replied, listing off possible things he would need on his fingers, much to Yoruichi's amusement and Ichigo and Shinji's ire.

"Okay geez, enough already," Ichigo sighed, running his free hand through his hair, while Yoruichi squeezed his other. Seeing a pleading look in her eyes, his shoulders slumped and he nodded back at her with a small smile. "While I may not have access to the resources that I used to, I have sufficient assets here to help you acquire whatever you need to get started on your work, as well as some…accommodating merchants that can help us get our hands on materials from the Soul Society."

Nodding their heads in thanks, Ichigo could see Yoruichi smirking next to him and sighed again, dreading what her mind was possibly cooking up now that they were going to stay here for the moment.

XXX

That evening in the Seireitei, in a discreet enclave beneath the Fifth Division, Sosuke Aizen sat at a computer screen, his eyes scanning over an immense array of calculations. His ear's pricked up when he heard the door open and close behind him.

"What do you have to report Kaname?" Aizen asked his underling, his eyes not leaving the screen in front of him.

"The search for Yoruichi Shihoin has been called off Aizen-sama," Tosen said with a bow. "And despite the extended search party from both the Gotei 13 and the Special Forces, neither Kisuke Urahara or your test subjects could be found anywhere in the Soul Society."

"I see, very well that is of no consequence, I was done with them anyway," Aizen replied nonchalantly. When Tosen made no move to leave though, he paused in his work and turned around. "Is there something further you wish to discuss with me?"

"Forgive me Aizen-sama, but there's something that has been troubling me ever since the battle that took place at the main senkaimon," Tosen answered, his face scrunched up in concern.

"What about it exactly?" Aizen asked with a raised eyebrow?

"Reports indicate that one of the intruder's reiatsu signatures belonged to Yoruichi Shihoin, but the unknown assailant that sparred with both Captains Ukitake and Kyoraku was registered unknown. It worries me that this unknown was able to both fend off both senior Captains and then still aid Yoruichi in incapacitating Captain Kuchiki," Tosen spoke in a cautious tone.

"I understand your concern Kaname, but I am not overly concerned with this development," Aizen replied, turning back to his screen. "It seems that the only reason they were defeated, was because they underestimated the attackers speed and strength and because it used that speed and strength to exploit a key weakness in each of them. It does not surprise me that Yoruichi had an unknown bodyguard to protect her, one trained so effectively that it served as a distraction for long enough to allow her to do whatever she needed to. Despite this apparent strength, it will not matter in the end."

Nodding his head at his master, Tosen left the room, his coat ruffling after him.

"Ya know that wasn't very nice ta lie ta him Captain Aizen," Gin said as he emerged from the shadows where he had been lurking.

"Gin," Aizen replied with a smile, turning to face his most promising Lieutenant. "You know that I am not a Captain yet, despite the fact that I could easily overpower most of the fools around us."

"Yeah, yeah but that's not the point," Gin said with a smile. "Ya told me that it was probably another noble that was helping her, now ya go and tell Tosen-kun that it was a bodyguard. I have ta wonder if ya really know who it was in the first place."

"All in good time Gin," Aizen said with a smile. "Players should never reveal their hands to one another after all. Now, come help me sift through Urahara's notes. I am looking for anything that would allow me to track him through those reiatsu blocking gigai he created."

XXX

Sitting on the roof of the shop that evening, Ichigo ran over the events of the last few days in his mind. After dealing through several questionable merchants and their specialist wares, he and Kisuke had quickly managed to assemble an operational lab with which the former Captain would be able to further supply their needs. What he did not count on though, was how childish the inventor acted with regard to several 'rare' commodities that he claimed they needed, but considering their unapparent use, denied him.

There was also the hollowfied soul reapers, or as they were known as now, the Visored. While Shinji was cordial with him, the others still kept their distance from him. The effortlessness that he had used to deal with Hiyori and the way he had reacted when she first awoke certainly didn't help matters.

_Flashback:_

_Ichigo had been descending the ladder to see how their training with their masks was progressing, only to find the pint-sized rage monster waiting at the bottom of the ladder._

"_Oi, who the hell do you think you are?" she shouted at him, obviously only having woken up recently, since the others hadn't told her of his presence._

"_Eh, I'm just a friend helping you guys out at the moment. I was the one you charged at like an idiot, while you were hollowfied. Ichigo Kurosaki, pleased to meet you," he answered, holding his hand out for her to shake. To his surprise, she slapped his hand away and fixed him with a glare._

"_Let's get one thing straight brat, I'm not your friend and I couldn't care less for who your name," she shot back at him. "What I want to know is what you are and why you're here?"_

"_You must be slightly brain-damaged after that beating I gave your hollow yesterday," he replied with a smirk. "Because I've already told you that I'm here to help. As for what I am, that's none of your business. In time I might tell you, but you don't get to know about my life just yet." Pushing past her, he made his way over to Kensei; at least he would be up for a spar to help Ichigo get rid of some of the rust. Before he had moved more than a few feet, he felt a dull object hit his head. Turning back to glare at her over his shoulder, he could see her hefting a rock in her hands while she smirked at him._

"_I asked you a question Strawberry, I'm not going to take 'some other time', for an answer," she shot back. In the distance, several of the Visoreds could see the impending conflict and made their way over slowly._

_From where she sat with Shinji, Yoruichi sighed and turned towards the former Fifth Division Captain. "Hiyori's going to get her ass kicked soon; you'd best stop her or be prepared to treat her injuries." Nodding at her, he flashed over to the two, appearing between them._

"_Enough Hiyori," he said, clasping a hand on her shoulder. "Kisuke and Yoruichi trust him, so that's all we need to know for now."_

"_Shut up, Shinji!" Hiyori yelled, slapping him away with her sandal. "We've just been exiled and already we're putting our trust in someone, we know absolutely nothing about? No way am I letting this go until I know that he won't go running back to the Soul Society, like a dog to its master._

"_Goad me all you want Sarugaki-chan," he snapped back at her, "but you're not going to learn anything unless I want you to."_

'_CHAN? CHAN!' Hiyori raged in her head. "I'll show you not to call me chan you idiot," she shouted, her sandal in her hand as she charged at him, slapping his face with all her might and causing his head to snap to the side. Unlike with Shinji though, the rest of his body stayed still._

_Within his mind, the bit of him that still considered itself the Prince of the Royal Family and Commander of the Royal Army, raged to be let loose to discipline the arrogant brat that dared to lay a hand on him…that dared to question his loyalties…that dared to call him a DOG!_

_Releasing his control on his power, he focused it all solely on the former Lieutenant in front of him. Quicker than the others could react, Hiyori found herself pinned to the ground, her body actually sinking into it due to the overwhelming amount of force being pressed down on her. Stooping down slightly, Ichigo lifted her by the collar of her shihakusho, bringing her up to his eye level._

"_You need to work on controlling your anger little ape," he said in a low menacing voice, his eyes paralysing her in fear, "because you never know when you just might provoke a power, far greater than anything you could ever hope to achieve. Now let me make this perfectly clear, I am here to help you to the best of my abilities, but call me a dog one more time…AND I WILL BEAT A SENSE OF HUMILITY INTO YOU, WITH MY OWN FISTS!" Tossing her over to Shinji, he stopped focusing his power on her, but didn't restrain it just yet and turned to glare at the other Visoreds. "Do the rest of you share her opinion? Do you believe me to be a dog for Soul Society? Do you believe that I will betray you like she says?"_

_Seeing them avert their gazes and shake their heads, he restrained his power, removing its weight from their shoulders. Looking over at Yoruichi, he could see her calling him over to talk. Shaking his head, he took off back up the ladder, divesting his clothing in the room they shared and shifted forms, the open skies calling to him as a way to dissipate his anger._

_End Flashback:_

Sighing to himself, he stiffened when a pair of arms wrapped around his neck, relaxing when he felt it was Yoruichi.

"What are you doing up here all alone," she purred into his ear, while she nuzzled into his neck.

"Just thinking about how many laws I've broken, people I've inspired fear in and unknown enemies that I've sworn to stop, you know the usual," he said nonchalantly, leaning back into her embrace.

"Still worried about the others huh?" she said as she rested her chin on his shoulder.

"Yeah. It just seems like the majority of my allies are reluctant to trust me, my family is against my decision and my enemy has an army at his back." Feeling a current of unease run through her, he cracked an eye open and looked at her. "What's bothering you?"

"Do you regret coming to help us now?" she asked tentatively, watching his eyes snap open at her question.

"What? OF course not!" he answered, trying to reassure her. "I made the choice to come help regardless of what happens." Reaching out he cupped her cheek with his right hand, "And no matter what, I will not bring myself to regret this," he finished and pressed his lips to her own, his tongue tracing across her lips before engaging with her own in a sensual dance. Soon he found himself pinned beneath her, his hands slipping under her shirt to caress her fiery skin, while she nipped at his neck and shoulder. As his hands started to drift lower though, Lisa's voice rang out to them.

"Oi, stop getting comfortable with one another and come grab a plate to eat, before the rest of the vultures eat it all," she yelled at them, her head poking up from the side of the building.

Shooting her a dirty look, Yoruichi sighed and reluctantly sat up, still straddling him.

"I'm betting that you're missing the little cottage in the middle of nowhere right now," he said with a grin, seeing her pout back at him, before slapping his chest lightly and heading back inside for dinner.

XXX

Poor, poor Yoruichi; there's always someone there to ruin her fun. Anyway I don't dislike Hiyori, but the way she treats strangers just pisses me off. I know it's understandable considering what she's been through, but that way she goes about it makes me want to see her put in her place.

Nothing more I want to say, see you next time.

What did you like, love or hate? Let me know in your reviews please.


	6. 6: Yoruichi's Match

**When the Heavens Fail.**

All right guys, I'm actually struggling with ideas at the moment. My plot outline at the moment calls for several time-skips of roughly 20-40 years. If it isn't to your liking, well I'm going to have to ask you to be patient, since writing over a 100 years' worth of events, will demoralise me. What I will do is go over major events in order, while minor events will be seen as flashbacks. As always, a heartfelt thanks for the reviews last chapter, and now on with the show.

Disclaimer: I do not own Bleach.

"Normal speech"

'_Thoughts/Inner Speech'_

"_Kido/Zanpakuto release"_

"**Zanpakuto"**

XXX

Chapter 6: Yoruichi's Match.

The following days in the Urahara Shop were definitely interesting to say the least. Ichigo had been right when he thought that Kensei would be up for a spar, as the man had rapidly donned his mask and charged at Ichigo, his dagger-like shikai at the ready, the moment he asked. Despite their matches with their zanpakuto, Ichigo found he enjoyed their 'Hakuda-only' matches the most. There was just one drawback to this though. Watching their practice, Yoruichi herself had gotten involved, which is why he found himself in a match with her right now. Ducking a fist as it crashed into the rock behind him, he sent a straight kick at her, watching as she effortlessly leaned back, somersaulting away from him. Smirking at her, he marvelled at the grace and flexibility she showed, which didn't help with this match. Not wanting to dwell on it any longer, he charged after her and received an eyeful of dirt as his reward.

"Fools rush in Ichigo!" she taunted from behind him, swinging her leg out to connect with his unprotected neck. An inch from his skin though, his hand reached out to grab it, so that he could spin her around before slamming her into the ground.

"Then we're both fools," he smirked, his eyes still shut and sending his foot crashing down where he felt her reiatsu. Rolling to the side, she was sent a good twenty feet away from the force of his stomp.

Looking up at him, she could see him running a hand over his face, a faint stream of water trailing after it, as it cleansed his vision. Grinning at her again, he gestured for her to come at him, a fact that she was only too happy to comply with.

From their seats, roughly thirty feet away, Shinji and Kensei watched the two spar against one another.

"How long have they been going at it now," Shinji asked, his eyes tracking them as they kicked up the speed, their steps kicking up clouds of dust, while their blows sent light shockwaves across the room, ruffling their hair slightly.

"Almost ten minutes," Kensei replied, idly twirling his shikai in his hand. He had just gotten through his own spar with the unknown soul reaper. In fact the only thing he knew for a fact was that Ichigo was clearly more than just an officer in the Royal Army. Considering that he was able to help Kensei out with his mask endurance training, aided with nothing more than his sealed blade, that put him at least on par with Kyoraku or Ukitake with regards to his skill and power. That only brought up more questions though, since no one of his skill level and power would be answering to others, but was far more likely to be giving the orders. His thoughts were shattered when Mashiro began to whine incessantly once again.

"I don't get it, why doesn't Berry-tan spar with me too," she whined, rolling around on the ground. "I'm also a Hakuda master, but he only seems to find time for dummy-Kensei and Yoruichi-chan."

"Wait, so now you want to spar with someone?" Kensei said in shock, his eyes widening. "Wait…you're jealous aren't you?" he said with a sadistic grin.

"AM NOT!" she shouted at him, her face screwing up in an angry pout, while she put her hands on her hips.

"Sure, of course you're not. So how is it that I'm the dummy here then?" he replied, turning back to the fight, just in time to dodge as Ichigo's body crashed into the rock he was leaning against.

"Sorry Kensei!" Yoruichi called out to him, her body covered in her incomplete shunko, the reiatsu only arcing slightly off her body. Emerging from the rubble, Ichigo rubbed the bruise on his chin and raised an eyebrow at her.

"And just what the hell is that Yoruichi?" he asked, his eyes analysing how her blows seemed to be amplified beyond what normal reiatsu would accomplish.

"What you've never heard of it?" she asked incredulously. "It's called Shunko, an art combining hakuda and kido to explosively increase one's strength."

"And you're using it against me now, because?" he asked her puzzled, seeing her cross her arms and pout at him.

"You're helping them gain control of a new power; can't you at least help me to control my new technique?"

Seeing the sad look she was giving him, he sighed and cursed her ability to manipulate him. "Fine I'll help you to control it, just warn me the next time you're going to try something new."

"LUNCHTIME!" rang Hiyori's voice in the air, putting a stop to any thoughts of further training that he had on his mind, as he and everyone else turned to see her poking her head down the trap door.

Heading towards the ladder, he could see Kensei teasing Mashiro about something, causing the child-like Visored to take a wild swing at him and miss by a mile as he ducked his head, chuckling to himself all the while. Next to him, Yoruichi and Shinji were discussing the technique she had just used and its advantages and pitfalls.

"Took you guys long enough," Lisa commented, as she, Tessai and Hachi served themselves, while Love and Rose were already seated on a pile of cushions in the corner. Seeing Yoruichi giving the perverted Visored a dirty look, Ichigo was more interested in how Hiyori quickly served herself and then high-tailed it out of the room. Smirking at her actions, he inwardly laughed at how she continued to avoid him even now.

"Where's Kisuke anyway?" Shinji asked, seeing the eccentric shopkeeper nowhere in sight.

"Knowing him, he's probably so wrapped up in tinkering with something new, that he's forgotten all about eating," Yoruichi answered him, seating herself at the table, plate in hand.

"I may as well go get him now, can't have him thinking on an empty stomach," Ichigo said with a grin, and heading off down the hallway to Kisuke's lab.

"Hey Kisuke, stop playing around in there and get out here," he called out knocking on the door. Without warning, the door was blasted off its hinges, sending him and it flying back down the hallway and through the wall of the wooden house.

"Argh my head…" he groaned, rubbing his hand over the spot where the door had hit him. Shoving the steel reinforced door off of him, he gazed back at the wreckage his body had created and winced. Emerging from the jagged hole in the wall was a concerned Yoruichi, her face showing that she was torn between laughing at his impromptu flight and smothering him with affection. She seemed to settle for a compromise as she chuckled and offered a hand to help him up.

Taking it with some reluctance, he wrapped an arm over her shoulder as they headed back into the house, seeing the rest of the Visored and Tessai gathered around the smoking form of Kisuke, his clothing charred and hanging loosely from his body.

"Well that didn't end very well," he coughed, brushing off the soot from his ruined hat and placing it back on his head. "It seems like the Hogyoku really is a handful to get rid of."

"No really, gee I would never have guessed," Ichigo said sarcastically, his arm still hung over Yoruichi's shoulder. "You know what Urahara, I think I need a vacation from you for a bit," he said with a crooked smile.

XXX

Soaring in through the air, Ichigo felt himself floating on an updraft, tilting his wings to the side every now and then so that he wouldn't rise to high. Feeling a shifting below him, he looked down at his passenger, inwardly smirking at the queasy looking feline as her claws dug into the sling that contained their clothing.

"Not enjoying the ride Yoruichi?" he asked, his high-pitched voice making it all the more mocking.

"What does it look like to you Ichigo?" she snapped back, her neck shifting just enough for her to glare up at him.

"Well you know this was all optional, but you did express a wish to see what it was like up here."

"This is not what I meant!" she shouted back at him, shutting her eyes closed as he started his descent towards his secret cottage.

Chuckling to himself, he remembered how they had left the Visoreds with a place of their own. It was just a simple home at the time, but with Kisuke's ingenuity, he was sure it would be like the shop in no time. Seeing that Yoruichi had already shifted into her animal form and was currently snoozing on her pile of clothing, he had, had the brilliant idea to…surprise her. Initially, she had only shifted around only slightly, but when she felt a cool breeze, as well as the caws of a seagull that had flown up to annoy him, she had literally hissed in surprise and yelled at him to put her down.

Now setting the sling down on the ground, he landed himself and ruffled his feathers, only to find his legs being grabbed by a pair of slim hands and hoisted upside down. Staring back at Yoruichi, he could see a vein throbbing on her forehead as she held him immobile.

"Um Yoruichi, let's not do anything hasty now shall we?" he pleaded, his shining eyes and girly voice, seeming to have some effect, since her grip loosened, until he eventually fell from her slack grip. Yelping he transformed back, just in time to spare himself a painful fall.

As he got to his feet, his tirade at her dropping him was short lived as she pressed her lips to his own. "You know we're alone right now," she whispered into his ear, as she broke of the kiss, wrapping her arms around his neck. "Imagine all the things we could do now that we couldn't while back at Kisuke's."

Conscious of the fact that she was in fact pressing her naked body against him right now, he grinned and wrapped his arms around her waist, engaging her lips in a fiery dance once again. Wrapping her legs around his waist, he carried her back into the cottage, their bodies pressed together so that barely any space existed between them. As he opened the door and made his way towards their bedroom, he was interrupted by a polite cough. Breaking apart, he peered over her shoulder to see who was waiting for them, only to rapidly pale before Yoruichi's eyes.

"Ichigo?" she asked in concern, peering over her shoulder and seeing a woman dressed in a light red kimono with brown hair that ran over her shoulders. The woman's presence seemed to radiate an aura of authority that made Yoruichi want to sink into a hole, considering her state of undress and the compromising position she found herself in. Releasing her hold on him, she stood next to him as his arms wrapped around her again.

"Onii-chan!" shouted a pair of voices from somewhere in the cottage, as a pair of young girls rushed into the lounge, halting abruptly as they stared at the two of them. As their faces rapidly turned bright red, Yoruichi felt the sense of dread return. Not because she was wrapped in Ichigo's embrace and being stared at by two young girls and a powerful woman, but because she recognised them now from Ichigo's memory as being his mother and sisters.

"ARGH CLOTHES; PLEASE JUST PUT ON SOME CLOTHES!" Karin screamed, as both she and Yuzu covered their eyes with their hands, trying to erase the sight of their brother and another woman standing before them stark naked.

Turning just as red, Ichigo flashed out the house again with Yoruichi, appearing next to the sling of clothing and rapidly dressing both of them, before rushing back into the house again.

"Uh mother, Karin, Yuzu; how nice to see you again," he said sheepishly, rubbing the back of his neck. "Uh this is Yoruichi Shihoin. Yoruichi, this is my mother Masaki and my two sisters, Karin and Yuzu," he said in a strained voice, gesturing to each of them in turn.

"Uh hi," Yoruichi greeted them hesitantly and offering them a slight wave of her hand.

"Well, I would ask how you know my son Yoruichi-chan," Masaki said with a twinkle in her eye as she smiled, "but from the way you two just entered I think I can guess."

"MOM!" all three Kurosaki siblings shouted, their minds still trying to erase the embarrassment from a few minutes ago.

"What? It's only natural that I'd assume that considering that there's very little a man and woman would do with each other, especially in that state of dress. Or should I say undress?" she said, holding her chin thoughtfully. "Anyway, I just made a pot of tea, so please do come in and sit down. Oh and Yoruichi-chan, please do go change into something a little more appropriate, you too Ichigo-kun."

"Of course, right away mother," Ichigo replied, dashing off down the hallway to the room they shared and shutting the door behind him.

"So…" Yoruichi began, staring at him with a look of embarrassment. "Your mother and little sisters, just saw the two of us, with our hands all over each other and our intentions quite clear and now she wants to have tea with us…how is this normal?" she almost shouted, sinking to the floor with her head in her hands.

"We can ask them all about that later, but please for now just get dressed," he implored her, tossing her a formal kimono as he rushed to don his own.

Several minutes later, a red-faced Ichigo, Yoruichi, Karin and Yuzu were seated at the table, idly drinking from their cups, while Masaki worked on something in the kitchen.

"So you and my brother are…dating," Karin asked, fishing for a word she could use. "How long have you known each other exactly?"

"Uh well," Yoruichi began, falling silent as Masaki entered the room with a tray full of sandwiches.

"Now, now Karin, we can hear all about their story later," Masaki chided her daughter. "For now eat up and no complaints," she added with a steely glare, watching as her children gulped and ate without complaint.

XXX

After lunch, Masaki had directed her children to tidy up the dishes, leaving her alone with Yoruichi.

"Come now Yoruichi-chan," she said standing and offering her hand to the former noble. "Let's go somewhere more private to…talk."

Gulping, Yoruichi took the offered hand hesitantly and allowed herself to be led out into the backyard, where they sat on a bench in the small garden.

"You know I haven't seen Ichigo's eyes stare at anyone like that since he was a baby," Masaki said as she stared off into the garden. "He kept a glimmer of life in them during his childhood, but it seemed to disappear when he took command of his father's forces. It made me wonder whether he would die alone on some obscure battlefield without ever having learned what it was like to love someone." Turning back to Yoruichi, she could see the woman absorbing her words. "Do you know that you're the only woman that he's really looked at like that? Despite all the other girls that have sought his hand in the past, only you seem to have captured his interest to actually progress beyond a simple greeting."

Now this was not something that Yoruichi wanted to go over. She was aware of how stifling marriage proposals were for a noble; she could only imagine the woman that Ichigo had been offered before he met her.

Seeing the dark-skinned woman's head dip down in thought, Masaki continued. "Thankfully none of them would even be able to hold a candle to you. After all, none of them would even think about abandoning their position for the sake of others. In that way you and he are very much alike."

"Thank you…for you kind words Kurosaki-san," Yoruichi said with a smile, seeing the older woman wave a hand at her.

"Oh please Yoruichi-chan, if you're going to be sleeping with my son, you could at least call me by my first name," Masaki quipped, seeing Yoruichi blush at her words.

"Make no mistake about it though," she said, her voice taking on a dark edge to it, "you leave my boy with a broken heart and you'll be begging for death before the end. Now then let's get back to the others, after all I want to discuss something with the Ichigo and his sisters would love to bond with you," she said her tone becoming cheerful again, while Yoruichi was unnaturally pale.

XXX

As they tidied up the kitchen after their mother's cooking, Ichigo watched her lead Yoruichi out of the house and into the backyard. Watching him, Karin smirked and nudged him.

"Worried that mom's going to do away with your girlfriend Ichi-nii?" she asked, chuckling at the expression on his face.

"Of course I'm not worried, she's done absolutely nothing to warrant mom to worry about me."

"I don't know about that, after all who knows what would've happened between you two if we hadn't been here already," she said with a grin, ducking as he tossed a dishcloth at her. "Touchy aren't we? Does that mean that you've already done it, or that you've been denied for so long that your frustrations are just now making themselves known?"

"Karin-chan!" Yuzu scolded her sister. "It is none of our business who onii-chan…'warms his bed with at night'," she said, trying to not think of her brother and his sex life.

"Would you both just stop!" he shouted, his face cherry red at their topic. "God you two have been hanging out with dad for too long if you're having these thoughts."

"But onii-chan, this is what mom told us on the subject," Yuzu told him, making his jaw hit the ground.

"Now, now Yuzu, there's some things that need to stay strictly between girls," Masaki said from the doorway, smiling down at her children, while Yoruichi chuckled behind her. "I'm leaving you two alone with Yoruichi for a moment, try not to break her like you did your brother," she added, leading Ichigo out of the room.

Once the two of them were gone, Karin turned to stare at Yoruichi. "So," she began looking Yoruichi up and down slowly, as if she was appraising her, "you and my brother are fucking each other?"

"KARIN-CHAN!" Yuzu screamed in shock, clapping her hand to her twin's mouth, while Yoruichi openly laughed this time.

"Not enough for my liking. After all there always to be some interruption to our fun," she said with a wink, making the twins sputter.

XXX

"Your father is worried about you," Masaki said, as she sat across from Ichigo, while he idly ran a hand over his desk. They were seated in his office and now she broached the subject that she had been dreading.

"Is he now? That's strange considering the fact that he did toss me around and cut my hands open," he replied nonchalantly as he stopped rubbing the surface of his desk. "So why don't you tell me why you're here, since you obviously didn't come to see me just because of father's worries." His tone, while polite, showed that he was suspicious of her.

"Your sisters missed you, they wanted to see their brother again and I wanted to see how my son was doing," she replied, seeing him nod his head. "I must say that I am surprised that you've entered into a relationship with the young Shihoin, how long has it been since you two…?"

"Got together? No more than a week or two," he answered a smile on his face as he remembered their time on the beach.

"And she makes you happy?" she asked, watching her son's eyes as they stared off into nothing.

"Being with her is the only joy I have at the moment," he said sadly, the life in his eyes being extinguished. "The more I come to learn about Aizen, the more I realise that he has weaved such an intricate web, that the slightest misstep will alert him and give him time to prepare. Now to add to my worries, I fear what will happen to her when it comes time to fight against the bastard."

"You know you could return with us if you wanted," she said, watching his head snap up and his eyes narrow at her words. "The two of you could come back with us and live free of that worry and go back to the old way that you got something past your father."

"And why should I mother? I know that it will be years, decades, maybe even centuries before I can defeat Aizen, but why should I go back to the one place where I am chained to an ideal I do not share anymore," he shouted at her, his anger at her tactics enraging him. "Yoruichi has friends and family she cares for here and in the Soul Society, what would happen if they were killed before we could intervene? She would live forever with the guilt that she had forsaken them to simply save herself. I've already started helping those that he twisted, and as such I consider them my own friends too and I will not leave them to fend for themselves. Now if that is all you wish to say to me, I would like to request that you leave me alone for the moment."

Standing, his mother nodded at him, seeing the protector within him emerge and takeover the little boy that he had been for most of the afternoon. To her eyes, she could see his power simmering below the surface, showing anger and hurt at her actions, but she had resigned herself to at least try and bring her little boy home.

"If you are set on this," she said as she walked to the door and opened it, "I will send someone with a report of anything of note happening in the Seireitei. It should prove helpful to you in your mission." Seeing him nod at her in thanks, she turned on her heel and headed back to the girls.

Once the door shut, Ichigo released his hold on his frustration and punched the desk, destroying the ornate piece of furniture in his rage. Holding his head in his hands, he tried remembering the good times with his family, hoping the images would calm him down enough before he returned to the others.

XXX

Okay I know that I used the interruption gag last chapter, but this is literally the one thing that would scare the shit out of me if it ever happened. Also I'm going to cut this cycle off here, since I want the next three chapters together since the action will pick up and I reveal my choice to you guys.

So what did you like, love or hate? Let me know please.


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